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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 



Chap. Copyright No... 

Shelf..V___5.5 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



BOOKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 



The Church School and Normal Guide. 

Discussing the Biblical basis and origin of the modern Sunday school, its 
historical development, the pastor's place, the "Older Scholars," the " Senior 
Circle," the work of the institute and normal class, with a detailed account of 
" The Palestine Class." 411 pp. Price, 90 cents. 

The Revival and After the Revival. 

A faithful study of the true and the false " revival ; " words of accurate de- 
scription, strong defense of protest and of warning. 75 pp. Price, 40 cents. 

Studies in Young Life. 

A collection of forty-one sketches, being vivid pictures of the foibles, perils, 
and best ideals of young people ; " vivacious chapters on social and moral 
topics." 254 pp. Price, $1.25. 

Better Not. 

A fair and helpful putting of the true relation of the Church and of young 
Christian life toward the wine glass, the dance, the card table, and the thea- 
ter. 86 pp. Price, 50 cents. 

Our Own Church. 

A study of our own denominational life, its catholicity, distinctive doctrines, 
and usages, and an answer to the usual objections made to them. It is de- 
signed to promote a loftier ideal, a deeper spiritual experience, and a 
wiser policy in the training and treatment of our young people. 173 pp. Price, 
50 cents. 

The Holy Waiting. 

A plea for and an aid to a greater reverence for the public services of the 
Church. A distinguished New York pastor wrote to Bishop Vincent : " The 
little book, in its beautiful binding and with its still more beautiful selections, 
has been on my table for several days. I have read and reread it, and must 
say you have met a real want in a most discerning way." 90 pp. Price, 
35 cents. 

Unto Him. 

A tender treatment of the most important theme— Coming to Jesus. It is 
full of practical counsel and stirring sentiment. 31 pp. Price, 10 cents. 

The Church at Home. 

Illustrated. A portion of Scripture, a hymn, and a prayer for daily family 
worship. 391 pp. Price, $1.90. 



The Chautauqua Movement. 

A complete account of the early development of the great Assembly idea, 
with an account by one who knows best the story of its beginnings, depart- 
ments, and growth. 308 pp. Price, $1. 

To Old Bethlehem. 

An account of the author's visit to Bethlehem in 1863, and again in 1887. 
26 pp. Price, 30 cents. 

In Search of His Grave. 
An Eastern study. 32 pp. Price, 30 cents. 

My Mother. 

The story of Mary Vincent, the mother of Bishop Vincent— a rare type of 
-womanly sweetness, maternal fidelity, and Christian piety. Price, 35 cents. 

Chautauqua Text-Books, on 

Biblical Explorations, Christian Evidences, Outlines of General History, 
Greek History, Koman History, English History. From 47 to 80 pp. Price, 10 
cents each. 

The Story of a Letter. 

An Exposition of the Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians. 44 pp. Price, 20 
cents. 

Two Letters to a Minister. 
An Exposition of the Epistles of Paul to Timothy. 46 pp. Price, 20 cents. 

2 



The Modern 
SxmM^ School 



By 

John EL Vincent 




Revised Edition 



New York : Eaton & Mains 
Cincinnati : Jennings & Pye 



56105 

l_ibrfca y of Cor^rao 
H'U COPttfc Wtctueo 

OCT 4 1900 

Copyright entry 




No 






SffW COPY. 
OfiDtti WV1S10N, 

OCT 18 1900 







^0 



Copyright, 1887, by 

PHILLIPS & HUNT 

New York 

Copyright, 1900, by 

EATON & MAINS 

New York 



INTRODUCTION. 



The pastor of a church is the pastor of its Sunday 
school. He is not the superintendent, unless regularly 
elected to that office, and it is usually much better that 
he be not thus burdened. He is pastor — the super- 
intendent's pastor, and the pastor of the entire flock. 
He has the care of all upon his heart. He should feel 
keenly and constantly this responsibility in the varied 
spheres of duty and dependence. 

To be a faithful pastor one needs to understand the 
theoretical basis, the ecclesiastical relations, the his- 
torical development, and the distinctive mission of the 
Sunday school and of its collateral agencies. The more 
he knows on these subjects the more cautiously and 
wisely he will work, the greater his influence as a pas- 
tor will be, and consequently the larger the success of 
the church he serves. 

Sunday-school work is not beneath the most thought- 
ful attention and the utmost enthusiasm of our most 
scholarly ministers. The Sunday school cannot be a 
"small matter" in the estimation of a large man in this 
age of educational emphasis and progress when peda- 
gogy, psychology, the scientific study of childhood, and 
sociological problems of every kind are receiving the 
most careful attention of the ablest, broadest, and pro- 
foundest thinkers of the age. 

Aiming at practical results, this is a book of theories, 



b INTRODUCTION. 

dealing, however, with theories only as they are neces- 
sary to successful work. True ideas are at the root of 
true work. It makes a great difference what people 
believe. He who holds an error is likely to put it into 
practice and to set himself for its defence. The begin- 
ning of God's service is honest faith in God's truth. 
Doctrines are practical things, and in Sunday-school 
work they are essential. The "work" is, indeed, very 
simple, practical, and commonplace. But he who 
thinks that "anybody can teach in Sunday school" har- 
bors a heresy which works harm to the institution and 
to all who are connected with it. 

There is another false idea from which has sprung 
a widespread harvest of tares. It is that "the Sunday 
school is independent of the church." Akin to it and 
equally injurious is the opinion that "the Sunday 
school is the children's church." These are errors ; nor 
do these exhaust the list, which some good men have in 
all sincerity accepted, and by which, unconsciously to 
themselves, much of their earnest service has been mis- 
directed. 

Theories determine methods, and methods are the 
mediums of contact between teacher and the taught. 
The experienced teacher develops plans of work in ac- 
cordance with his theory and in subjection to the neces- 
sities of his individuality. As he thinketh so he teach- 
eth. And while no one else may be able to employ his 
particular devices, a knowledge of them, and especially 
of the ideas from which they spring, will be useful to 
all other teachers. There is a quickening power in 
ideas. To know ten different ways in which ten men 
teach, will certainly help the eleventh teacher, although, 



INTRODUCTION. 7 

after all, he follows his own course and discards every 
one of the ten methods proposed by his exemplars. 
He is helped by them because he sees in one or more 
of the plans radical principles of education which sug- 
gest to him other and original ways of reaching, arrest- 
ing, awakening, and developing mind. 

These chapters are the result of many years of 
thought and experiment. The author was a Sunday- 
school pupil before he was five years old. His father 
was for a long time a successful Sunday-school super- 
intendent. He has himself served as teacher, super- 
intendent, pastor, and normal-class conductor, and has 
been for thirty-five years a close and careful observer 
of the Sunday school on both sides of the ocean. 
He has taken a special interest in the training of 
Sunday-school teachers through institutes and nor- 
mal classes ; and has given much attention to the devis- 
ing of plans for unifying all departments of church 
work, to the end that there may be economy of power 
and a hearty and intelligent co-operation among all the 
agencies of the church in the work of Christian culture. 

N"o one department of the church can alone educate 
her youth. Certainly the Sunday school at its best can- 
not do it. There are other and more important instru- 
mentalities. Home, with its authority, early oppor- 
tunity, affection, and example ; the Sanctuary, with its 
living voice and solemn services ; the Pastorate, with its 
daily contacts and personal magnetisms ; the Press, with 
its silent, multiplied, and perpetual ministries — all of 
these must unite with the Sunday school to give it in- 
dorsement, support, and authority. This book is based 
upon this radical co-operative idea. 



8 INTRODUCTION. 

With the new thought of the times concerning educa- 
tion and especially with the new enthusiasm concerning 
primary education, the modern leaders of the Sunday- 
school movement have made prompt application of the 
best theories and methods in secular pedagogy to Bib- 
lical and religious instruction. The return, through 
Pestalozzi, to the Socratic method and the noble work by 
Dr. Sheldon, of Oswego, are bearing fruit in the scien- 
tific method of President G. Stanley Hall, of Clark 
University; Professor Starbuck, of Leland Stanford, 
Jr., University ; of the "Chautauqua 'New Education in 
the Church/' the "Normal Bible School," of Springfield, 
Mass., and other modern advance movements. An 
admirable monograph by Mary E. Hutcheson, on "Sun- 
day School Beform," recently issued, calls the attention 
of the Church to the demand for the application to the 
work of religious education of the most advanced secu- 
lar theories and methods. 

There is no danger that a more perfect knowledge of 
God's way with the human soul in the processes of edu- 
cation and providence will diminish our confidence in 
the divine processes of grace in "conviction," "conver- 
sion," "salification," and "edification " 

John H. Vincent. 

Episcopal Besidence, Zurich, Switzerland, 

July 27, 1900. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER PAGE 

I. The Three Schools 11 

II. The School and the Church 15 

III. The School and the Home 23 

IV. The Organization 38 

V. The Superintendent 43 

i 

VI. The Teacher 72 

VII. The Normal Class 85 

VIII. The Institute 120 

IX. The Teachers' Meeting 151 

X. The Teacher at Work a 158 

XI. The Lesson Review 172 

XII. Gradation 187 

XIII. The Primary Class 204 

XIV. The Senior Classes 225 

XV. The Lessons 248 

XVI. The Week-day Power 269 

XVII. The Country Sunday School 279 

Appendix A 299 

Appendix B 302 

Appendix C 320 

9 



10 CONTENTS. 

Appendix D 325 

Appendix E 327 

Appendix F < 330 

Appendix G 333 

Appendix H 347 

Index 355 



THE 

Modern Sunday School. 



CHAPTER I. 



THE THREE SCHOOLS. 



The Sunday school is a modern title for an ancient 
and apostolic service of the church. It is a school on 
Sunday. It is a school for "disciples." It is a school 
with a "Master/' It is a school with "lessons." It is 
a school with a text-book." All this the Sunday school 
is, and all this also is the church. 

The "Master" with the "disciples" about Him, by the 
seaside, on the mountain, in the desert, in the temple, in 
the synagogue, in the upper room — that was Sunday 
school in the first century. It was a school for question 
and answer, for conversation, for illustration, for appli- 
cation. There was no sermon, perhaps, nor lecture, 
save as the Teacher, in response to spoken question or 
look of wonder, continued for minutes to unfold the 
meanings of the Old Testament, or the mysteries of the 
new kingdom. It was not always held for one hour on 
Sunday. In those days all days were sacred, and all 
hours were laden with opportunity while the Son of 
God walked on the earth as Son of man among the sons 
of men. 



12 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

There were times when the Master "worshiped" ac- 
cording to the established order of temple and syna- 
gogue. There were times when He "preached" — -the 
multitudes before Him, His themes the law, the proph- 
ets, the soul, the Father, the future — His illustrations 
taken from life and nature. But, supplementing serv- 
ice and sermon, He taught in the informal way of con- 
versation when men sought Him to inquire concerning 
the things of the kingdom, when casual encounters gave 
Him opportunity, as at Jacob's well or on the way to 
Emmaus, or, when away "from the madding crowd," 
He talked of the deeper, personal verities of His mission 
to His own chosen disciples. 

In these catechetical and confidential interviews, in 
these casual conversations full of question and sugges- 
tion, of susceptibility on the part of the taught, and of 
tact on the part of the teacher, I see the germinal school- 
idea of the church, continuing throughout the 2Tew 
Testament period of the early church, and reviving from 
time to time through all the centuries, whenever Bibli- 
cal and vital piety broke the iron bonds of civil, ecclesi- 
astical, and ritualistic oppression. Given an open 
Bible, an earnest believer, a sincere seeker, or an ex- 
perienced saint, and the school-form of question, answer, 
illustration, and application is at once assured. The 
"conferences" of the Reformation, the "class-meetings" 
of the eighteenth-century revival, the "inquiry" and 
"fellowship meetings" of ISTew England, and the "Bible 
readings" of to-day are but normal, irrepressible, neces- 
sary outgrowths of a religion that believes and rejoices 
in supernatural realities as set forth in a written Word. 

With such earnestness of faith comes one other pro- 



THE THREE SCHOOLS. 13 

vision. The souls that love to build each other up by 
the natural processes of edification — the interchange, 
elucidation, and application of truth — seek also to help 
the unenlightened, that they, too, may know the way 
and the Word of the Lord. They seek for souls. They 
welcome inquirers. They awaken the indifferent. They 
instruct the young. They lay foundations of Christian 
character by the conveyance of Bible knowledge, teach- 
ing the susceptible, filling their memories with the facts 
and words of revelation, alluring them by the delights 
of association, of song, and of wise tuition — that the 
coming Spirit in youth or in later years may find truth 
ready for the kindling fires of grace. Thus the Sunday 
school becomes a preparatory school, giving the lessons 
of truth which, in after years, are to be fused by the 
power of the Spirit, and turned into living, throbbing 
energies of character. 

Beyond the limits of the church, beyond the homes 
of believers, beyond the bounds of Christian civilization, 
are neglected multitudes to whom the very alphabet of 
religion is an unknown thing, and the familiar phrases 
of Christian faith a strange tongue. Children, neg- 
lected by parents, pastors, and godly neighbors, are 
growing up in absolute ignorance black as darkest pagan- 
ism. Little careless feet patter about on the steps of 
stately cathedral, not knowing, save in senseless profan- 
ity, the name of the God to whom it is dedicated. 
Heathen crowds in the centers of Christian civilization ! 
To them come Christian teachers, like Raikes of Glouces- 
ter. Opportunity opens, and the Bible teacher enters. 

Here, then, are three forms of the school-idea in the 
church of Christ: 



14 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

1. The School Spiritual — for the promotion of per- 
sonal divine life through high converse among mutually 
interested and eager souls, who fear the Lord, and speak 
often one to another; in all wisdom, teaching and ad- 
monishing one another, the Word of Christ dwelling in 
them richly. Among them through His own Word 
comes the Christ Himself, and their hearts burn within 
them as He talks with them by the way, and opens to 
them the Scriptures. 

2. The School Preparatory — for the communication 
of the truth to the ignorant, the young, the susceptible, 
to whom this world is more real and more fascinating 
than the world to come; to the children of Christian 
people who at home see the Bible and occasionally hear 
it read, who go to the church for public service, and feel 
a personal, or family, or social interest in its members, 
its services, its pastor, its reputation. The Sunday 
school is a preparatory institution in which they receive 
systematic training in the letter of the Word and in the 
formulas of the church. 

3. The Mission School — for carrying the gospel to 
the regions beyond — beyond the present reach of pulpit, 
church service, pastor, or church society; for gathering 
in the neglected and outcast ; for teaching the ignorant 
and prejudiced ; for preparing the ground that soon the 
church in her full organization may come to welcome 
and recognize, to enlist and bless the masses hitherto 
beyond her circle of power and fellowship. 



THE SCHOOL AND THE CHURCH. 15 



CHAPTER II. 

THE SCHOOL AND THE CHURCH. 

I shall not, in this attempt to adjust the relations of 
Sunday school and church, with a view to a more perfect 
practical co-operation between them, enter into the 
ecclesiastical questions which arise when we seek an 
exact definition of the church. I leave to the students 
of ecclesiastical history and to the theologians the prob- 
lem pertaining to the relations of the visible institu- 
tion to the invisible and divine energies of grace, 
whether conveyed from an early and original deposition 
through appointed, visible ecclesiastical lines of com- 
munication, or bestowed under a present and immediate 
dispensation of the Holy Spirit, to individual souls who 
surrender themselves to the divine leading. Let us 
rather consider the work to be done by the Sunday school 
in furthering the practical ends for which the church 
has been established. 

And what are these ends? The Word gives ready 
and easy answer to our question. Every command, 
every promise, every figure of speech, every line of 
argument by which the aim and work of the true be- 
liever are set forth, help to define the mission of the 
church. "Be ye holy;" ye shall be "partakers of the 
divine nature;" ye are the "salt," the "light" of the 
world ; "as therefore ye received Christ Jesus the Lord, 
so w r alk in Him, rooted and builded up in Him, and 



16 THE MODEKN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

established in your faith, even as ye were taught, 
abounding in thanksgiving." 

What is the church ? "A spiritual house/' "the habi- 
tation of God," "the household of God," "the flock of 
God," "the temple of the living God," "the body of 
Christ," "the pillar and the ground of the truth." It is 
to be in the world "salt" for seasoning, "light" for 
illuminating, a "rock" for building, a "hill" for exalt- 
ing, a "tower" for protecting. It is designed to "save" 
men, to reveal to them "the unsearchable riches of 
Christ," to make known "the manifold wisdom of God," 
and to give men some insight into "the breadth, and 
length, and height, and depth," that they may "know the 
love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that [they] 
might be filled with all the fulness of God." So vast 
and high and eternal and glorious are the ends for which 
the church has been established on the earth. 

The true Sunday school helps, in its own way, to be 
sure, but in an unmistakable way, to attain these lofty 
objects of the church. Otherwise the world does not 
need the Sunday school. This is the first and radical 
idea. The work of the Sunday school is spiritual and 
divine. It is spiritual and not merely natural ; divine, 
not merely human. It is to be truly and intensely 
religious, or we can dispense with it altogether. 

This doctrine — the churchly and religious character 
of the true Sunday school — needs present, emphatic, 
and universal enunciation. For over against this 
ground present dangers lie, and our most insidious 
enemies lurk. The spirit of the age is worldly. In the 
church worldliness nowadays runs to ecclesiastical 
restheticism, to ritualism and to the love of show, the love 



THE SCHOOL AJSTD THE CHURCH. 



17 



of money and the love of rule. It is easy for the worldly 
spirit to capture an organization and carry it on in the 
interest of personal ambition, social pleasure, public 
display, and of so-called "success." The local church is 
sometimes (let me express the belief, rarely) thus cap- 
tured — minister and all. The Sunday school may with 
greater ease be seized and used. It may become a "Sun- 
day sociable;" a "side show;" a chance for a "live" and 
popular business man to advertise himself and gain 
friends and a name in the interest of trade ; an institu- 
tion alongside of, but other than the church, and inde- 
pendent of it — independent of its pulpit, independent 
of its session or conference, and it may suddenly develop 
rivalry, if not antagonism, silent and effective, if not 
expressed. The Sunday school may be "run" by so- 
called "modern methods ;" by its music ; by its library ; 
by its "splendid organization and order;" by its "exhi- 
bitions," its annual "picnics," "Christmas tree," and 
other festal services. It may be the "biggest school" 
in town, have the "best singing," and "do more than," 
or "go ahead of," its neighbors in half a dozen ways. 
A Sunday school may be thoroughly organized, graded, 
disciplined, provided with schemes of examination and 
of promotion admirable enough to excite the envy of a 
secular educator, and still it may wield only a natural 
power and tend only to worldliness. 

These natural and artificial and utterly human ele- 
ments I do not wholly depreciate, and would not discard 
the best and truest of them. They may not hinder 
spiritual life, but they cannot create or promote it. 
They are, at their best, of earth and not of heaven. 
They are lamps, but not oil ; cups, but not water ; plates, 
2 



18 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

but not food; mirrors, but not the sun. Let us have 
them, but let us not depend upon them. Let us have 
them, but let us have something else and something 
better. 

The Sunday school is thus the product of the truth, 
the aim and the life of the church. It is a part and a 
primitive method of the church. It should be sustained 
by the church, and should be under its complete control 
and responsible to it. The Sunday school should co- 
operate with all the other departments of the church, 
and should contribute to its power. And all teachers 
duly elected should be publicly recognized before the 
"great congregation" as teachers in the church of Christ. 
(See Appendix A.) 

In this connection I make earnest protest against 
making the Sunday school a substitute for public church 
service of worship and preaching, especially in the case 
of little children. The public service is for them, and 
they should be required to attend it regularly. They 
should also early be led to a personal knowledge of 
Christ, and an identification of themselves with the 
church. To these two topics let me give some 
attention. 

First, the attendance of children upon preaching. It 
is desirable. The service is one divinely appointed. It 
is a means of spiritual quickening. It is an intellectual 
stimulant. It elevates the tastes. It is a wholesome 
way of passing a portion of God's day. It is calculated 
to exert a good influence upon the child as a member 
of society, and of the nation whose prosperity so much 
depends upon the recognition of God. The reverence 
there begotten for the minister as an ambassador of 



THE SCHOOL AND THE CHURCH. 19 

heaven has a beneficial effect. The worship is inspiring. 
Blessed are the children whose feet tread the courts of 
the Lord's house on the day of the Lord ; who go thither 
from habit, never having known anything else from 
earliest childhood. 

I am familiar with the usual objections : "The child 
cannot understand the sermon." ISTor do all adults. We 
shall do well to remember that the children are more 
appreciative hearers than many suppose, and that with 
increase of culture and wisdom and tact on the part of 
the ministry we shall have more simplicity and plain- 
ness of speech in the pulpit, to the advantage of both 
children and adults. 

"Our children are disinclined to go." How does it 
happen that they have ever had any choice in the matter ? 
They should not remember the day when they did not 
attend preaching. But, then, what has their disinclina- 
tion to do with the claims of God and of their earthly 
parents ? Have they not learned prompt and unques- 
tioning obedience to a father's command? And do 
parents grant children a release from all uncongenial 
tasks ? Because disinclined to it, do they neglect the 
week-day school and its appointed lessons ? 

"We may prejudice our children against public serv- 
ice, so that when they become old they will not attend, 
because alienated from the church by the rigorous dis- 
cipline of childhood." The opposite is true. The men 
and women of our day who are most faithful in attend- 
ance upon the sanctuary are those who have been habit- 
uated to it. Those who are allowed in youth "to have 
their own w T ay" are not usually the most devout saints, 
nor the most regular in the discharge of public or private 
religious duties. 



20 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Let this be our rule : Give some truth in every sermon 
to hearers of all capacities — to every man his portion in 
due season — rightly dividing the Word of God, and our 
children will grow up to reverence and delight in the 
sanctuary and in the law of the Lord. 

Let ministers urge upon heads of families the impor- 
tance of this duty, and then let them study so to read the 
Scripture lessons and order the service of song and 
preach the words of eternal life that the "duty" dis- 
charged by the parent may be by the pastor transformed 
into a "delight" to the children. So shall they bless 
him, and the blessing of a little child is next in precious- 
ness to the blessing of the Lord himself. 

A few words upon the second topic : The children and 
church membership. Whatever be the theological opin- 
ion and the ecclesiastical policy with reference to child- 
hood and its religious life and relations, one thing is 
incontrovertible : the earlier a child can be brought to a 
personal recognition of Jesus as his Saviour, and to a 
personal identification with the church, the better for 
him. Baptized or unbaptized in infancy; at birth a 
sinner or by the provisions of grace virtually a saint; 
with these questions I have not now to do; but this I 
say: As early in the child's life as possible, teach him 
implicit trust in Christ and the full consecration of his 
life and all its possibilities to Christ. We may depend 
upon the co-operation of the Holy Ghost, who will sup- 
plement our lack of insight into the peculiar nature of 
the child, and the immaturity of thought and convic- 
tion which we are so prone to attribute to our youth. 

Let us, however, be wise with our very highest wisdom 
in this direction. Remembering that the conversion of 



THE SCHOOL AND THE CHURCH. 21 

the little one is the work of the Spirit, let us seek the 
Spirit. Remembering that the Spirit operates through 
the truth, let us teach the truth. We must : 

1. Distinguish between a transitory emotion easily 
traceable to circumstances, and the deeper and often less 
demonstrative work of the Spirit of God. 

2. Guard against unwise public methods of "seeking 
religion." We believe that children should publicly 
profess Christ, but we are painfully aware that the very 
measures often adopted to secure this end are more likely 
to develop pride and morbid self-consciousness than 
piety and humility. Let God's ministers guard this in- 
terest under the leading of God's Spirit and the dictates 
of their best judgment. 

3. Take good care of the little disciples after the first 
profession. Teach them ; bear with them ; aid them ; 
remember that they are children. We should not attempt 
to adjust to their young souls any morbid type of piety 
which has been taken out of a "religious biography," 
and which was, even with the adult, an exception if not 
an excrescence. Never try to take the "boy" out of a 
boy in order to make him a Christian. What he loses is 
worth more to him than what he receives in the ex- 
change. Rather lead him into the paths of practical 
faith in God. Teach him the s;lorv of hard service for 
Christ. Exalt principle. Store his mind with gospel 
facts and maxims and promises. Teach him to pray 
daily, to love the Lord as he loves his mother, to be true 
always and everywhere, to avoid all pretences, and to 
represent the power of Christian faith at home, on the 
playground, at school or in the street. 

Let us be careful not to foster self-complacency and 



22 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



conceit and morbid self-introspection where lowliness 
and self-forgetfulness and looking alone unto Jesus are 
to be sought. It is very easy to substitute a transient 
feeling for a genuine spiritual fervor. It is easy to ring 
the chimes in the steeple and forget the heavens above, 
and the open book on the pulpit below, and the humility 
which befits the altar, and the poverty and sorrow in the 
garrets, which hear the chiming bells and wonder if the 
Lord has left no follower to visit and pray with and in 
His stead to bless the helpless. 

Glib talk is a poor substitute for hard work. Tears 
are cheap. Profession is easy. The tendency of 
"religion" is too often toward talk and tears, to the 
neglect of toughness and struggle and heroism, and true 
faith in Christ and hard service for Him. 

Let us keep our children free from the error of sup- 
posing that public profession is "the do-all and the be- 
all" of religion. Let us cultivate in them modesty and 
fidelity to duty and simplicity of character. 

This, then, is the duty of the Sunday school : to recog- 
nize its identity with the church, to live by and for the 
church, and to train its members, old and young, to 
personal fidelity to the authority, the services, the enter- 
prises, and, above all, to the great and divine Head of 
the church. 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 



23 



CHAPTEK III. 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 



The sweetest word in our language is "home." The 
beginnings of human life for time and eternity occur at 
home. The most effective school is home. It is in 
point of time before all other schools, in point of power 
above all others. It exists and exerts its influence by 
the side of all others, and when the elements of true 
home-life are found within all others the real power of 
every school will be greatly enhanced. 

The Sunday school is an institution which has to do 
with adults, but primarily with children. Now, it is 
impossible to consider an institution which is designed 
to reach, to affect the intellect, the character, the con- 
duct, and the eternal destiny of childhood without con- 
sidering, at the same time, its relations to that earliest, 
holiest, mightiest of all institutions — home. 

For five or ten years before the teacher, the superin- 
tendent, or the class begins to affect the mind of the child 
he is under powerful influence for good or for evil in his 
own home. The four years of a college course are 
scarcely more effective in the life of a man than the four 
years in the nursery, during which he begins to live — 
and all this before the Sunday school reaches him. 

Father and mother have the firm confidence of the 
child, and his fervent, unsuspecting, unhindered love. 
They have for the child unfailing love, and over him an 



24 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

unchallenged authority. Then who can measure the 
unconscious influence of the home, its opportunities to 
illustrate everything it teaches, and to reiterate this 
teaching day after day, year after year % 

The illustrative value of the home deserves greater 
attention. It provides object-lessons of the most effect- 
ive character, given under the most favorable condi- 
tions. Action day after day puts a real meaning into 
words. What are the words "law," "penalty," "justice," 
"truth," to the mind of the child who has never had 
object-lessons in them at home ? How much they weigh 
in the pulpit when the boy recalls the daily home ad- 
ministration and character with which he is familiar, 
in which broken "law" is followed by "penalty" accord- 
ing to "justice" and in pursuance of the word of "truth" 
spoken by his father ! What significance is given to all 
the Christian virtues, as the eloquence of the preacher 
calls the list, when the child can think of every one of 
them incarnate and alive in his own mother's dailv 
spirit and conduct. 

It is important, therefore, beyond any power of words 
adequately to express, that the Sunday school recognize 
this home influence, utilize its advantages, detect and 
neutralize what baleful influence the careless and irre- 
ligious home may exert, and labor faithfully to secure 
hearty and constant co-operation of mothers and fathers 
in the religious instruction of their children. 

The Sunday school has, from its very constitution 
and aims, many of the elements of the home, and it 
should seek to develop them to the fullest degree, that 
children already favored with the right domestic influ- 
ence may have increased love for and faith in the school ; 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 25 

and that those unfortunates who have no religious help 
from father and mother, and whose everyday surround- 
ings are of the most unhomelike character, may find 
rest, love, comfort, and strength in the Sabbath school 
and its friendships. Therefore the Sabbath school 
should be like home and not like a military academy; 
like home and not like a recitation-room ; like home and 
not like a Romish church ; like home and not like a pub- 
lic lyceum for entertainments. 

These elements of home-life should be developed in 
the Sunday school to their highest degree of power. The 
place should be comfortable, attractive, beautiful; the 
home constituency of the Sunday school should embrace 
parents and their children. The aim of the school 
should be the Biblical, spiritual, practical education of 
its members in order to useful lives and a blessed eter- 
ity. The atmosphere of the school should be filled with 
reverence, faith, cheerfulness, sympathy, freedom, and 
divine love. The school should make a wise use of the 
experiences of life among its pupils, and by cultivating a 
home spirit and attachment within itself turn all its 
confidences, affections, afflictions, separations, etc., to a 
good account. The elements of home-life in the school, 
thus developed to the full measure of their power, should 
react upon the actual homes of its members — cultivating 
them and then cordially co-operating with them. The 
teacher should endeavor to reach beyond his scholars to 
the homes they come from, the mothers and fathers who 
so mightily influence the young lives committed to their 
care and to ours. Therefore I say to the teacher: 
Glorify home. Speak often of home. Visit the homes 
of your pupils. Seek to brighten and strengthen them ; 



26 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

and invite your pupils to your home as well, that you 
may get a firmer hold upon them. The fact of their 
associating with you may lead them to nobler living. 
You are able to supply them with ideals which otherwise 
they might never apprehend, and an awakening of true 
and elevating affection which otherwise they might 
never enjoy. And this coming of your life into theirs 
as a personal friend will put joy and love into their own 
homes later on in life. 

The teacher should encourage the pupil to make a 
careful home preparation of every lesson, that coming 
to the class he may take a deeper interest in its exercises. 

This preparation in advance by the scholar increases 
the teacher's opportunity to make a deep impression; 
increases the power of the school over the home and 
home-life of the pupil, and promotes more perfect co- 
operation between teacher and parents. 

How shall this desirable end be promoted? I offer 
the following suggestions: — (1) The teacher should 
expect it; (2) should feel and manifest disappointment 
and sorrow when the pupil fails to prepare; (3) should 
frequently and emphatically insist upon it; (4) should 
make inquiry on the subject when casually meeting his 
pupil during the week; (5) should write to parents 
about it; (6) should visit parents in order to promote 
it; (7) should outline ivorlc for the pupil to do at home 
during the week, not requiring too much; (8) should 
manifest pleasure when his pupils show, by recitation, 
that they have made attempts to do work at home; (9) 
the superintendent should frequently plead with the 
scholars to prepare at home; (10) the pastor should 
insist upon it from the pulpit; (11) the pastor, super in- 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 27 

tendent, parents, and teachers should cultivate con- 
science in their pupils on the subject; (12) they should 
endeavor to promote spiritual and Biblical tastes in 
their pupils. 

The author some years ago prepared the following 
leaflet, addressed "To the Parents of our Pupils." A 
message of this kind could not fail to produce an im- 
pression : 

"1. We, the pastor, superintendent, and teachers of 
the Sunday school to which your children belong, send 
you a few words of greeting in the name of the Great 
Teacher. 

"2. The design of the Sunday school is twofold: (1) 
To make plain to our pupils the truths taught in the 
Holy Scriptures; and (2) to lead them to love and obey 
the Lord Jesus Christ, who is set forth in these 
Scriptures. 

"3. It is exceedingly difficult for us to succeed in this 
without the help of your parental authority and influ- 
ence. Your opinions, teachings, and example have im- 
mense power with your children. A child will for a 
long time believe what his father believes, and love what 
his mother loves, in spite of all that the school, the 
church, and the world may teach. 

"4. It is not strange, therefore, that we greatly desire 
to secure your co-operation in our work, and it is the 
object of this missive to show you what you may do to 
aid us. If we seem over-zealous in this matter, attribute 
any excess you may detect to our real and profound 
interest in the child or children coming from your home 
to our classes. We are deeply interested in their spir- 
itual and eternal welfare. 



28 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



"5. The following are the requests which we make : 

"(1) Show, as far as you are able, an appreciation of 
our work. Let the children see that you have faith in 
the school and its objects. A word in our favor may 
beget in the child a strong faith in us, and this will give 
force to our teachings. 

a (2) If you are not acquainted with the school or 
with our method, or if from any cause you have doubts 
concerning us, or even slight prejudices against us, we 
respectfully ask you not to give expression to such 
doubts or prejudices before your children. Write to 
us. Visit and remonstrate with us. In any way you 
may deem wisest and best let us know your convictions 
and desires, but do not unnecessarily awaken suspicion 
or distrust in the minds of your children relative to their 
religious teachers. 

"(3) See that your children feel the claims of the 
school upon them. If we are doing them good, if we 
give them knowledge, if our services are worth anything 
to them, see that they appreciate it. Show them what 
benefits they are themselves deriving from our instruc- 
tions, that their regard may not merely be based upon 
your opinions, but upon an intelligent appreciation of 
the value of the Sunday school. 

"(4) Send them to the Sunday school regularly and 
punctually. By authority, by argument, or by persua- 
sion secure their presence every Sabbath the year 
through, and at the proper time, that the order of the 
school may be promoted. 

"(5) We say above, 'send your children to the Sunday 
school.' May we amend by suggesting that you bring 
them ? Can you not find the time ? Can you not come 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 29 

as visitor, as teacher, or as pupil ? We have classes for 
adults, where the Word of God is expounded, and where 
you would find both pleasure and profit. We are in 
almost constant need of new teachers. Have you no 
gift or call in this direction ? Your regular attendance 
would be a great blessing at least to your own children. 

"(6) Encourage and assist your children to prepare 
their Sunday-school lessons at home. A little aid in this 
direction will greatly augment our powers. We have 
no authority to compel perfect recitation. We are not 
permitted to punish neglect or failure. Our work is 
voluntary, and depends for its success upon the free-will 
of our pupils. A very little home co-operation would 
render our teaching much more effective. In some 
families it is the custom to recite the 'Golden Text' of 
each week's lesson at the table during the week. Others 
have an 'at home' lesson meeting on Saturday evening 
or earlier in the week for the preparation of Sunday's 
lesson. All such help reacts on the parents, and blesses 
the children by giving to their homes a higher aim and 
holier atmosphere." 

In 1871 the author of this volume published a 
tract on "The Country Sunday School." In that he 
gave the following advice: "Establish family Sunday 
schools. We say to the Western farmer, If you live 
on a prairie, ten miles from every other human being, 
organize a Sunday school. If there are only two per- 
sons in your house, open a Sunday school. Sit down 
and read a portion of God's Word together ; talk about 
it, memorize it, ponder it. Save one or two dollars and 
send for a library of six or eight good books. Give 
your little germ of a home Sunday school a name, 



30 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

report its existence, seek God's blessing, and keep at 
work fifty-two Sabbaths a year." On the same page 
I recommended "Window-sill Gardens" as follows: 
"If but two or three families live within reach, get them 
together for a Sunday school. We know it will require 
faith and forbearance, patience and love, but these may 
be had in unlimited measure. On window-sills of the 
fifth story of crowded tenement houses in this city we 
have seen narrow boxes filled with earth, and green 
vines springing up from them and shading the windows. 
In Palestine we have seen flowers, green grass, and 
fragrant shrubs blooming in tiny clefts and in thin 
crevices of the rock and on narrow terraces. Despise 
not the day of small things. Verdure and bloom and 
fruit may come where there is just soil enough for root- 
hold. Despise not these little clusters of insignificant 
houses in out-of-the-way, country places. Where you 
can get a handful of children or adults, organize a Sun- 
day school. A Shakespeare, a Milton, a Whitefield, a 
Peabody, may be there. But of this be sure, where five 
lowly souls are, there are five immortals redeemed by 
the blood of Christ ; and although their names are never 
known beyond the limited neighborhood in which they 
were born, you may register these names in the Book of 
Life. There they will shine for ever." * 

To facilitate the work of home development in 
religious lines, and to reach parents without personal 
obtrusion (often annoying and offensive), I prepared a 
large envelope, filled with material and to be sent under 
letter postage to homes from which children never went 
to Sunday school, nor parents to church. The size of 

* " The Country Sunday School," pp. 8, 9 (1871). By J. H. Vincent. 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 31 

the envelope, and the fact that it cost so much postage to 
send it, would guarantee it a reception and a careful 
examination. On one end were printed the following 
words : — "I come — a Mystery. I have a meaning and a 
mission of my own. Receive me freely, treat me fairly. 
I shall do thee no harm. 'East and west, at home the 
best.' " Within the envelope were placed several small 
illuminated picture-cards and book-marks ; several 
pleasant pictures (wood engravings) which the little 
children would look at and keep, whatever father and 
mother might do with the contents designed for them. 
There were also bold-type mottoes from twelve to 
twenty-four inches long, which somebody would certain- 
ly put on the wall. They were mottoes about the duties 
of children. There were in the envelope two small 
sealed envelopes, one addressed to "Father" and one to 
"Mother." In these were bold words about parental re- 
sponsibility and duty which no living man would care to 
speak to them. They could not be offended, for no one 
need know the contents of these little envelopes unless 
the receiver chose to make report of them; and then, 
whoever sent them must have cared to do good, for "see 
how much postage he spent to send them." Then there 
were in this little budget of home inspirations tracts on 
secular education and on the wonders of science, with 
lesson papers for a month of home Sunday school, and 
directions as to how a family might study together the 
Word of God. 

From the beginning of my work as a Sunday-school 
specialist I have exalted the home as the most important 
school in the world, and its co-operation as necessary to 
the efficiency of both week-day and Sunday school. In 



32 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

all addresses on Sunday-school work for twenty years I 
have insisted upon the home as first, best, and most 
important of all educational agencies. 

It is, therefore, especially gratifying to me to see the 
recent development of Sunday-school work in this 
direction. The Congregationalists of America have, 
following the suggestion of Mr. W. A. Duncan, Secre- 
tary of the Chautauqua Assembly, organized a "Home 
Department," and have issued, under the direction of 
the Rev. A. E. Dunning, Principal of the Chautauqua 
Assembly Normal Union, the following circular, accom- 
panied by pledge and roll cards, with promises for week- 
ly collections in the interest of benevolent work : 

"Dear Friend, 

"Aware that many are deprived of the 
privilege of the study of the Bible in the regular service 
of the Sunday school, on account of age, infirmity, 
distance from the church, and similar reasons, our Sun- 
day school has a Home Department to aid all such, to 
be composed of those who will comply with the follow- 
ing conditions, which are made as simple as possible 
in order to enlist all we can in the work: 

"1. Sign and return the pledge enclosed, which asks 
you to spend not less than a half hour each Sunday in 
study of the Sunday-school lesson for the day, whenever 
you are able to do so. 

"2. Keep for yourself, or for yourself and others of 
your family who are also members, upon the enclosed 
report card, a record of your attendance upon the study 
of the lesson, marking with X X any Sunday when you 
attend the main Sunday school. 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 33 

"3. On the last Sunday in each quarter, put the 
report card in an envelope, and address it to the super- 
intendent of the Sunday school. 

"Lesson quarterlies, either the larger or smaller, will 
be furnished you (by mail or otherwise) each quarter at 
five cents each for the Senior, and four cents for Inter- 
mediate grades ; and they will be sent free to any who 
feel unable to pay for them. As far as we are able, you 
shall be made acquainted with the work of our school 
and of this department. 

"It is hoped that this simple, easy plan will receive 
your cordial support. 

"Faithfully yours, 

"A. E. Dunning." 

I hope to see the time when families by the ten 
thousand will be enrolled as parts of such "Home 
Department," and when cards, leaves, books, and papers 
filled with information and inciting to diligent personal 
and home study will find their way into the centres of 
power — the homes of the land. 

The "International Bible Reading Union" is another 
movement which promises to turn our homes into sys- 
tematic schools of Bible study. Let parents, teachers, - 
and children give their names and influence to this great 
every-day home Bible school. 

But our pastors must put greater stress on the one 
all-important duty of family prayer. There can be no 
substitute for that. It is difficult to make general state- 
ments, with any confidence in their accuracy, concern- 
ing the extent to which family devotion is maintained 
in the American home. One may say that "the custom 
3 



34 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

has been almost entirely abandoned/' or that "compara- 
tively few households nowadays open and close the day 
with domestic worship." But who knows this ? And 
how can any one know unless he has made it a matter of 
special, wide and careful investigation ? He may know 
the rule of his own house, of his brother's, or father's 
house in this particular, but what of the sixty other 
families in the church he attends ? With how many of 
them has he ever spent a night ? Of how many has he 
ever made particular inquiry ? And what of the other 
denominations, some of whom may be more conscien- 
tious in this respect than the church to which he belongs ? 
What of other sections of the country ? He may live in 
Minnesota or Vermont. But what of the custom in 
Western Pennsylvania or in Georgia ? It is a difficult 
matter for any man to speak on this subject with au- 
thority. Family prayer may be on the decline in 
American homes. There are some apparent general 
tendencies in social and church life which suggest the 
fear that such is the case ; but who knows ? Might it 
not be a good thing for pastors to put the question and 
collate the replies ? Some families have prayer on Sun- 
day mornings. Some mark the special church days by 
such observance. Some have prayers when they have 
ministerial guests, some when affliction has entered the 
house, some during the special revival meetings of the 
year. How many have prayers regularly ? How many 
never have them ? How may we get at the facts ? 

In the meantime there is one thing we as pastors may 
do. We may call the attention of church members to 
the subject. By tracts distributed, by sermons deliv- 
ered, by frequent reminders given in public and social 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 35 

services, by pastoral questioning and faithful admoni- 
tion, we may stir up the heads of Christian households 
to this most important part of their duty as Christians. 

Some of us have positive convictions on the subject. 
We have memories that confirm us. Whatever people 
do now, or did once, we know what our fathers did. 
Twenty years of family prayer, morning and evening, 
was likely to leave an impression on the children. 
What if they did "not like it" because it w T as "tiresome," 
or because they had "no taste for it?" What if they 
occasionally wished that "father would forget it some 
mornings ?" What if, when they visited other homes 
where prayers were omitted, they wished that at their 
house they could have the same freedom from the 
restraints of religion ? What if they did resolve not to 
bind their own children by any such invariable custom 
when they should become heads of families % When at 
last father died, they missed the usual service, and as 
they looked into his thin face and remembered how 
those lips, now silent, had faithfully called on God every 
morning and every evening, they were glad that this 
record had been made by the departed saint, and they 
quietly resolved to make the same record. Prayer may 
interfere with business plans now and then for five or 
ten minutes in the morning, but no one ever regrets it 
when the last morning has come and the coffiin is in the 
parlor. 

Family prayer is a great educator. It is an object 
lesson to little people which teaches more than any 
catechism or homily. It is reverend recognition in 
action of the unseen God. It is a visible sign to chil- 
dren of an invisible authority. Why does the greatest 



36 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



strength they know of bow down with closed eyes to ask 
for strength ? Why does the tenderest, sweetest love 
they have ever seen or dreamed of bend the knee and 
breathe a prayer for love ? To the child's mind comes 
the answer, My father and my mother look up to God 
as I look up to them. I, too, must look up to God* 

The reading of Scripture in the family is likely to be 
omitted entirely unless made necessary by the law of 
daily domestic devotion. Suppose it is a reading lesson 
of only five verses each morning. That will make 
thirty-five verses a week, and seventeen hundred and 
twenty-five verses a year. Multiply that by ten years. 
How much of God's Word is read in the hearing of the 
household by a fixed habit of holding a brief season of 
family prayer once a day! 

Family prayer exerts a silently subduing and refining 
power over the house. It calms the mind. It stops the 
currents of secularity. It brings into the mind great 
and holy thoughts. It connects daily life with heaven. 
It sends out over the day a restraining influence. 
Kitchen and school work will move a little more smooth- 
ly. Sin will seem more sinful. There will be a firmer 
safeguard against temptation. The family that does 
not open the day with prayer must lose power. 

Family prayer supplies parental opportunity. By it 
the foundations of doctrine may be laid, reproofs ad- 
ministered, divine authority recognized, dangers appre- 
hended and avoided. It is much easier to govern a 
family of children where parents and children habitu- 
ally invoke God's blessing. 

Family prayer, especially where there are very young 
children, or worldly minded young people, need not be 



THE SCHOOL AND THE HOME. 37 

objectionably protracted. A minute is, after all, quite 
a long time. How much Scripture can be read in one 
minute ! How many things one can ask for in a prayer 
one minute long ! 

Let us have the fixed order. Never omit it. Before 
breakfast or after breakfast; fix the time, and daily 
mark it. Sit down deliberately. Avoid all signs of 
haste. Read carefully a few verses — five, ten or more. 
Kneel for prayer. Then pray. Pray for something 
definite. Pray short, but in a calm, reverent and 
leisurely way. Open the home, and the hearts that are 
in it, to the heavens. Do this daily. Let nothing pre- 
vent. The reward will come. 



38 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



CHAPTEK IV. 



THE ORGANIZATION. 



The Holy of Holies in the Jewish Tabernacle was 
designed for the presence and manifestation of the 
Shekinah — the source of all strength, guidance, and vic- 
tory for Israel. That presence was everything. And 
yet how particular the directions given to Moses touch- 
ing the construction of the place for the presence ! The 
material, the measurements, the sockets, the curtains, 
the veil, the ark, the cherubim — all "after the pattern' 
shown him by the Lord. "Even so shall ye make it." 
Absolute dependence upon the divine power did not 
hinder most careful attendance to the human conditions. 
As then, so now. 

The best use of force in associated labor requires 
economy, and in order to economy there must be organ- 
ization. I turn, therefore, to the human side of our 
Sunday-school work — its organization and management. 

As organization is effected for the distribution of 
labor, its power is, first of all, expressed in the appoint- 
ment of certain persons who are to carry out its purposes. 

Thus we find in every organization: (1) Its own 
original or derived authority; and (2) a certain trans- 
ferred authority by which its agents perform the work 
for which they were appointed. 

The Sunday school has its authority and its officers 
— the power and the agents of that power. These agents 



THE ORGANIZATION. ■ 39 

may be distributed in three classes : (1) Those who sim- 
ply perform the work necessary to the existence and 
management of the organization — such as secretaries 
and treasurers. (2) Those who perform or direct the 
work for which the organization was effected — the three- 
fold service of administration, worship, and instruction, 
such as the superintendent and the teachers. (3) Those 
who supervise both classes of agents and every depart- 
ment of the work, such as the pastor, the church com- 
mittee in charge of the Sunday school, and finally the 
central ruling power in the church itself. 

The question as to the original authority of the 
Sunday school will be answered according to the theory 
of the person questioned. It may be in the school itself 
as an independent organization, a society outside of all 
churches, and amenable to none. It may be, and I think 
in every case should be, from the church as a divine 
institution established to do a given work, and creating 
the Sunday school as the wisest and best method for 
doing that work. Having established or recognized the 
method, the church as a local body, or the church con- 
nectional, should be responsible for everything pertain- 
ing to the school — for the constitution or plan under 
which it is to be conducted, and for the officers who are 
to have control for this purpose. These should make 
regular reports to the church in her governing confer- 
ence or committee, or to the congregation in which all 
ecclesiastical power may be lodged. 

Sometimes the whole authority rests with the pastor, 
who, being responsible for the work of teaching, chooses 
of his own will to use the Sunday school as one plan 
for doing his own work. So he organizes it as he 



40 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

pleases, conducts as he pleases, and appoints whom he 
pleases as his assistants. This was the view of Dr. S. 
H. Tyng, one of the earliest, wisest, and most energetic 
of the Sunday-school men of America. In my early 
years as a Sunday-school worker, I wrote to Dr. Tyng, 
asking for a copy of the constitution of his Sunday 
school. He gave me a prompt and courteous reply, but 
said he was sorry "he could not come." Dr. Tyng was 
his own Sunday-school constitution. The power could 
not have been lodged in a wiser, more generous, more 
affectionate, or more positive heart and will ; but it is a 
good thing that this autocratic idea does not prevail in 
the modern Sunday school. 

Authority must dwell somewhere, and where more 
appropriately and securely than in the church itself? 
The church should create the school — the regular church 
school, and as well the mission school on the borders. 
It should appoint the officers, subject to such co-opera- 
tive plan as may enlist the judgment and sympathy of 
the teachers with whom the officers must be associated. 
The church should give liberally to the support of the 
school, should in every way manifest its deep interest 
in the work of the school, and thereby gain a recognition 
of right when in an emergency it is compelled to inter- 
fere for the protection of any interest. 

This is true of mission schools. It is true of denom- 
inational schools. They should, wherever practicable, 
be under the control of some responsible church. All 
truly "Union" people — those who believe in the unity of 
believers — can as readily do effective work under a de- 
nominational as under a "Union" banner. A union 
school must soon or late become a denominational school. 



THE ORGANIZATION. 41 

The sooner the necessary development occurs the better. 
And better still if it can begin in this larger, wiser way. 
A Sunday school, to do its best work, needs a church 
behind and responsible for it. 

In the election of officers, and especially of superin- 
tendent, I have already intimated that the teachers 
should share responsibility with the pastor and church 
committee. They understand the condition and needs 
of the school. They render voluntary and gratuitous 
service, and seem to have a measure of right in the mat- 
ter. It would be bad policy to give children a voice in 
the selection of the superintendent. To say nothing of 
their lack of judgment, it would be injurious to youth, 
already too little subject to government, to place such 
power in their hands. The plan of allowing children to 
vote is every way pernicious. JSTor would much be 
gained by extending the right of suffrage to adult 
classes, many of whose members are not members of the 
church, and are not competent to judge as to what will 
best serve the church. As in secular schools, from pri- 
mary department to college, instructors are selected for 
the students, even though they may be men full grown, 
it will be safest and best in Sunday schools to leave the 
selection of teachers to the church itself after such 
method as its governing body may deem most wise. In 
this way, too, a deal of political wire-pulling, or at least 
of temptation to it, will be avoided. 

The representatives of the governing power of the 
church in the Sunday school would do well to be there 
as teachers or as members of adult classes, rather than 
as a separate council with visible authority. It is rarely 
that they will have occasion to exert their power against 



42 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

the preference of the school, but can do so when neces- 
sary with greater effectiveness if by their constant pres- 
ence they are one with the school, and know by personal 
acquaintance its conditions and necessities. People 
shrink from ecclesiastical interference. The record of 
ecclesiasticism in the world justifies to some degree this 
sensitiveness, and is perhaps the cause of it. It will be 
well, therefore, to keep the churchly authority in the 
background, and to invoke its public and official ex- 
pression against the general preference of the school 
only when nothing else will do. 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 43 



CHAPTEE V. 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 



The Sunday-school superintendent I describe is not a 
perfect man in physical appearance or health, in intel- 
lectual endowment or culture, in temporal circumstances 
or prospects, in spiritual attainment or profession, in 
professional ability or reputation ; but he is by no means 
a dead man, or a dolt, or a pauper, or a bad man, or a 
drone. If he is not at the top of the ladder, he certainly 
is not at the bottom. There may be "smarter" men 
than he is, and bolder men, and men that dress better 
and have more money, and have seen more of the world ; 
but our superintendent is a man that nobody dare laugh 
at, or scoff at, or scold at, or defy. He has good sense 
and a good heart. He loves his work, and wishes he 
could perform it better, and would be very willing to 
resign if he had evidence that it would be better for the 
school that he should do so. 

The superintendent superintends. He superintends 
to protect. He chiefly protects the teachers and pupils 
committed by parents and the church to his care. 

He protects the pupils against all bad influence — 
careless, irreverent, and superficial teachers, and all 
weak and wicked fellow-pupils. He remembers that 
parents commit their children to his keeping during the 
hour of the Sabbath-school session, and he is conscien- 
tiously anxious to guard them against anything which 



44 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

would be likely to weaken their regard for the church 
and the Word of God. 

He protects teachers against interruption during the 
class-hour. He himself never comes near a class during 
the time assigned by the programme of the school to the 
study of the lesson. By counsel and example he pre- 
vents interruption by pastor, assistant superintendent, 
treasurer, librarian, and visitors. 

He protects the entire school against weariness and 
annoyance. Elaborate and protracted speeches are* 
never delivered from his platform. ~No Sunday-school 
magnate is great enough, or important enough, to oc- 
cupy the precious time of his session with an address. 
He so adjusts the ordering of the programme, and so 
carries it out, that everything finds its time and place, 
and the benediction is pronounced before the school is 
exhausted. 

He tries to improve. He subscribes for all the peri- 
odicals he can afford to take and study. He studies the 
lesson helps, and attends conventions, institutes, assem- 
blies, and normal classes, whenever he can. He thinks 
that other people may know some things that he has not 
yet learned, and that they may have good plans which 
he has never adopted, and of which he has not yet heard. 
He knows, too, that ideas stir him up and start ideas in 
himself — ideas of his own — which he can work better 
than any borrowed or secondhand ideas. So he puts 
himself where he may be "stirred up" by other people's 
experience and speculations. He ponders what he 
hears and reads. He discusses all new suggestions, and 
draws out people whose judgments he values ; and while 
he does not make haste to adopt a new plan, he does not 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 



45 



discard it because it is new and different from anything 
he has ever done or thought. He often asks the ques- 
tion in the teachers' meeting, "What are some of the 
defects in the present administration of the school ?" 
He thinks that he may get help from the men and women 
who every Sabbath observe him, and who must be 
hindered or helped in their work by him. 

He tries to be a practical example of what he expects 
or desires in his school. He wants his teachers and 
scholars to be punctual, so he is punctual. He loves in 
them good order, self-control, reverence, attention, sym- 
pathy, patience, studiousness, enthusiastic love of the 
school. He, therefore, says little about what he loves, 
but shows his taste, preference, delight, and desire in 
the most effective way. He tries to be a specimen. He 
does not say so, but everybody knows it, and that makes 
them desire to please him. His being is better than 
bell-ringing and lecturing. The plainest proof of a doc- 
trine is the practice of it. Thus he governs by example. 

He knows what quiet is in Sabbath school. It is as 
nearly perfect stillness as may be secured— a stillness to 
which the average public-school pupil is accustomed 
during the opening moments of the week-day school. 
The charm of absolute stillness is as great in the one 
place as in the other. It is much easier to secure in the 
secular than in the Sunday school. It is not, therefore, 
of less importance in the latter. Some superintendents 
seem oblivious to all disturbance, whispering, rustling 
of papers, shuffling of feet, restlessness of body, all of 
which produce a kind of suppressed confusion. Their 
ears do not seem to detect, nor their tastes to be shocked 
at even trifling disorder. It would do the superin- 



46 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

tendent great good occasionally to attend the chapel 
services or other opening exercises of the village or city 
public school. He would thus cultivate sensitiveness 
in the right direction. 

The true superintendent knows, as I have said, how 
to be quiet himself — quiet in spirit, offering the prayer, 
"Calm me, my God, and keep me calm;" quiet in 
deportment, carrying himself with dignity, ease, steadi- 
ness; free from all perturbation, excitement, and emo- 
tion ; quiet in administration, never ringing his bell nor 
rapping on his desk with violence, never betraying a 
sense of personal injury at the insubordination of his 
scholars, giving his commands in a subdued tone of 
voice, filling the school with the peaceful atmosphere 
which he desires all to breathe. He knows how to wait 
for quiet: standing for a minute without moving a 
muscle, looking steadily, holding himself in a hushed, 
patient, undisturbed mood, until every pupil, seeing 
him, knows what he desires and purposes. 

The true superintendent is in charge of his school 
seven days a week. He has it on his brain and on his 
conscience and on his heart all the time. He begins his 
Sunday-school work on Sunday morning before he gets 
out of bed, and keeps at it until the following Saturday 
night. He dreams about it when he sleeps. In the 
place of secret prayer, at the table, on the street-car, in 
his shop, on the street, he is a Sunday-school superin- 
tendent, praying, planning, practicing. It makes him 
smile to see one of his teachers or scholars. He is 
never so busy that he cannot give a nod of the head, 
a pleasant look of recognition, and a word of welcome 
to anybody connected with the Sunday school. It is 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 47 

his custom to carry a pocket-book in which are re- 
corded all the names of his school. He has another 
pocket-book with the lesson for the week pasted in it, 
and blank pages for his own random thoughts. If he 
meets John Roberts, a scholar in the intermediate de- 
partment, he at once begins to ponder the lesson with 
John in mind, to see if he can find a turn, a topic, a 
thought, that might do the boy good. If he meets a 
teacher, he has a word to say about the lesson — a hint to 
give or a question to ask. Being so full of Sunday- 
school work week-days, he gets a heavy pressure on by 
Sunday, and less wise men, with such a "head" of 
knowledge, would flow too freely and too long during 
the Sunday-school session. But — 

The true superintendent knows how to keep still and 
when to stop. He does not pour forth every speech that 
tickles his brain. He could talk a great deal, but he 
does not. He could "say a few things" about the lesson 
at the opening of the session, and before the lesson be- 
gins and after the lesson closes, and before, during, and 
after the "reveiw," and again at the close of the school. 
But he holds his tongue and brain in subjection. He 
never speaks too often nor says too much His teachers 
and pupils and visitors wish he would say more, but he 
is a man of few words, and these are always to the point 
and well chosen, and full of wisdom, and the multitude 
of unspoken thoughts gives power to his speech. 

He is a religious man. He believes the Bible to be 
divine. He believes this with his heart. He is neither 
weakly credulous nor sceptical. He is free from 
fanaticism and full of faith. He hates sin and loves 
righteousness. His example is right, for he knows that 



48 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

deeds are mightier than words, and that what the super- 
intendent does will tell more effectively than the lessons 
he communicates in review and exhortation. What it 
is not well for his pupils to do he certainly must not 
himself do. What is not becoming in his minister is not 
becoming in him. The card-playing superintendent, 
the dancing superintendent, the theatre-going superin- 
tendent, the wine-drinking superintendent — all these 
are examples which work harm, and only harm, to 
the young people who belong to the school and the 
church of which that school is a part. This is his honest 
conviction. There is no soft sentimentality about his 
piety. He has no "put-on" tones. He does not talk 
about "dear Jesus" after the sickly manner of some. 
To him Jesus is a reality, a person, a presence, a mar- 
velous power. He believes in Him, loves Him, lives 
for Him, represents Him in all uprightness of life, 
purity of speech, and consistency of example. The 
scholars say that they never thought of Jesus as being so 
practical and gentlemanly and great-hearted and un- 
selfish as He has seemed since they knew their superin- 
tendent. There is always something said from the 
superintendent's desk about Jesus Christ. Every les- 
son has something in it about Him. The hymns 
selected to be sung are full of Him. The superin- 
tendent's prayer seems to bring Him very near, and the 
superintendent has one thought deeper, stronger, more 
constantly present than any other ; it is apparently em- 
bodied in this question: How shall I be like the Lord 
Jesus Christ, and make my teachers and scholars like 
Him? 

He is a man of one book. And that is not music- 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 49 

book, record-book, report-book, or library-book. Nor is 
it question-book. It is The Book of books. The Sun- 
day school is the Bible school. The truth it teaches 
is Bible truth — the facts and ethics and doctrines and 
promises of God as contained in that great treasury of 
holy learning. The superintendent is a Bible man; a 
believer in the Bible ; a lover of the Bible ; a reader of 
the Bible; a student of the Bible. That book is his 
favorite book, his "classic," his companion. He knows 
its best things, its sublimest things, its most useful 
things. These he runs over so often that the leaves 
drop out. He needs a new Bible every once in a while. 
The superintendent makes his scholars and teachers 
understand the value of the Bible by giving it the right 
place in the school. He reads directly from it. He 
requires his teachers to use it in the class. He requires 
the class to use it in their recitations. The Book is the 
symbol on the walls and on the banners of his school; 
the sacred ornament of his desk; the key-note of all 
songs; the final authority in all discussions; the prep- 
aration for every prayer; the last thing of every 
session. The Bible lesson is the staple of the pro- 
gramme; the theme of "addresses" to the school; the 
source of "supplemental" or special lessons. The super- 
intendent honors the Bible that his teachers and pupils 
may honor it. He speaks of it frequently, handles it 
reverently, quotes it acurately, teaches it systematic- 
ally, searches it personally, prayerfully, diligently. 

Where such a "rock" is laid by a wise master-builder, 

the foundations of the Sunday school will be firm. 

Where such a "lamp" is placed, there will be clear light. 

Where such "manna" is supplied, there will be abundant 

4 



50 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

food. Where such "riches" are accumulated, there will 
be inexhaustible resources — "gold" and "silver" and 
"precious things" of the heavenly kingdom. 

The superintendent does not organize his school to 
death. He believes in organization, but he believes 
also in freedom. He has an aim, a general plan, a 
fixed purpose, much zeal, and depends upon the general 
influence of these forces for success in his work. He 
does not multiply beyond reasonable limits committees, 
boards, circles, societies, etc. He believes in the print- 
ing-press, but does not multiply cards, tickets, certifi- 
cates, circulars, ad infinitum. He depends a great deal 
on the common sense of people. He believes that the 
memory may serve a good purpose. He announces 
from his desk, and the pastor announces from the pul- 
pit, many of the things which other people would put 
into print at great expense. He does not have too many 
meetings; therefore ordinary people can remember his 
appointments. He avoids the puerilities which many 
superintendents adopt, and while his general plans may 
be easily understood by the little people, there is nothing 
in their simplicity which to the mature scholars savors 
of silliness. He believes that simplicity may comport 
with dignity, and that child-likeness is a very different 
thing from childishness. 

The superintendent, however, knows the powers of 
the press. He may not be ambitious to carry on an 
independent paper which he or his school edits, in lieu 
of regularly established church periodicals. He may, 
indeed, publish a quarterly or annual in which his school 
has a special interest, but this does not crowd out the 
standard periodicals. He insists upon the use of papers 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 51 

and books in his school. He sets his will strongly in 
this direction. In his own mild but firm way, he talks 
about the "absolute necessity" of putting a paper every 
week into the hands of every pupil. He believes that 
we cannot, in one hour on the Sabbath, do the whole 
work of instruction that is demanded by the Sabbath 
school. A good paper must supplement a good lesson. 
Nor does he stop at periodicals. He is a firm believer 
in good books, and in the Sunday school as a centre for a 
good circulating library in the community. He believes 
in religious books of every class and for every class of 
pupils — religious biography, works of the imagination 
true to the religious idea, church history, works on spir- 
itual life, experimental and practical; but he also 
believes that as the pupils of his school will read 
something during the six days of the week, and will not 
confine that reading to books of a purely religious and 
spiritual character, and do not usually have access to the 
right kind of secular literature, it is the duty of the 
school to provide for its library a secular department,, 
containing standard works of unquestionable character, 
entertaining and elevating. He would be glad to have 
this great library open through the week, if possible ; at 
least, on two or three afternoons or evenings. He would 
encourage everybody to secure their books during the 
week, and he would make provision on the Sabbath only 
for those who do not find it convenient to reach the 
library on any other day. He believes in the power of 
the tract. He knows that a monograph charmingly 
written, a condensed argument, a chapter of biography 
or history, a personal appeal, will be welcomed and pon- 
dered where a larger volume might be laid aside. With 



52 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

such faith in the press, and with such broad views con- 
cerning its employment by the Sunday school,* you will 
not be surprised to see each member of his school coming 
from its session with a weekly paper of some sort, a 
good tract, a religious book, and some book on general 
literature for week-day reading. By furnishing such a 
large supply of reading matter he preoccupies the spare 
time of the pupils through the week, and prevents the 
purchase by them of the weak and silly trash which is 
now so largely patronized, the tendency of which is to 
defeat the very objects contemplated by the Sabbath 
school. 

The superintendent has well studied the power of 
personal influence. He knows that the "hand-to-hand 
work" is worth a great deal more than merely public 
ministrations. He knows the power of social sympathy 
— the kind word, the smile of friendship, the manifesta- 
tion of personal interest — and in a quiet way he has 
committed nearly all of his pupils, at least those who are 
in special need of such personal supervision, to the care 
of the best men and women in the church. Each one 
of these unpublished class-leaders has a list of the names 
of older boys and girls placed in his charge by this 
sharp-eyed, wise superintendent. If Miss Mary hap- 
pens to meet Mrs. — — on her way from school ; if Mrs. 

invites Mary to 3, cup of tea, or to a half hour chat 

over some new photographs ; if Mrs. calls for a few 

minutes at Miss Mary's home, leaving a choice extract 
from some paper, or a few pages marked out of some 
book, to be read at her leisure — all these movements 
may seem like accidents, but they are merely the carry- 
ing out of the plan of the skillful superintendent, who 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 53 

has a score of ladies and gentlemen engaged in the same 
silent, social ministry, and who knows very well that 
every such casual interview, or call, is of as much 
spiritual and social benefit to the class-leader as to the 
class of persons helped. 

The superintendent waves his magic, invisible wand, 
and many a household has its family circle enlarged by 
the presence of two or three guests, who are there ap- 
parently through spontaneous courtesy, and who are 
thereby won to the support of the church, and to whom 
the lessons of the Sabbath become vital and practical. 

The superintendent knows enough of human nature 
to recognize the wisdom of the secular system of educa- 
tion, which draws sharp lines between grades of pupils, 
assigning to one class the primary grade, to another the 
■intermediate, to another the high school. He notices 
that in the last-named institution the principal addresses 
"young ladies" and "young gentlemen," not "girls" and 
"boys." He also sees that the songs, the drills, the reci- 
tations, and all the requirements of the place are of a 
higher type than those employed in the lower classes. 
In so many ways he imitates this wise policy of secular 
educators. 

The superintendent has heard of the "assembly 
idea."* He approves the suggestion that the Sunday 
school is almost of necessity a juvenile institution, and 
that while we call it "Sunday school," with the his- 
torical and traditional associations connected with it, it 
will be almost impossible to retain in its courts our 
young people with any real enthusiasm and devotion. 
He has therefore proposed to organize all the members 

* For the " assembly idea " see pp. 232-240, 



54 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

of his school over fifteen years of age into an "Assem- 
bly." Once a month (after a while he hopes to do it 
oftener) he requests the "Assembly" to remain after the 
school has been dismissed, and then they all occupy the 
front seats, boys and girls (now young men and young 
women), teachers and all; and with the pastor, and him- 
self as president, on the platform, engage in services 
more dignified and thoroughly adapted to this mature 
department of the church. 

Boys who were ashamed to be called Sunday-school 
boys, because of the misconception which almost every- 
where prevails concerning the institution, find no offence 
in being identified with the "Assembly," and the super- 
intendent sees large possibilities in the "Church Assem- 
bly" of the future. He sees in it doctrinal study and 
discussions, archgeological lectures and illustrations, 
lecture lessons in Biblical evidences, scientific experi- 
ments for week-day hours, and various drills which will 
unite the public school, the academy, and the college 
with the church, and reveal the religious charm that 
there is in science, showing more and more to our young 
people what firm friends of science are the church, the 
Bible, and the clergy. 

The true superintendent understands very well the 
power of home-life. He knows that, in spite of the most 
faithful labors of the Sunday-school teacher on Sunday 
and through the week, it is possible for home-life, ex- 
ample, spirit, and unconscious influence to neutralize ail 
that he may do. He therefore tries to link his school 
with the homes it represents. He sends out from his 
desk, by way of the several classes, imaginary tele- 
graphic and telephonic lines, which extend to every 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 55 

household. He prays for the parents of his scholars; 
he publicly reminds the children of the Bible require- 
ment concerning obedience to parents. Wherever, in 
the review of the lesson, it is possible to do so, he brings 
out the religious duty of reverence and obedience and 
kindness at home. He reminds the children of the trials 
and perplexities which their parents experience. In 
every possible way he seeks to build up in the hearts of 
his pupils a conscience touching their final and fraternal 
duties. His efforts in this direction are exerted upon 
the teachers until they say: "It is a hobby with our 
superintendent. He is always talking about the homes 
and the parents of the scholars." He now and then asks 
the teachers if they become acquainted with these 
parents, and if they are in the habit of sending messages 
to them by their scholars ; if they enter their closets to 
pray for them. All these messages and ministries, 
reaching in so many ways and so frequently the ears 
of parents, excite in them a general interest in the school, 
and a particular interest in the superintendent. In- 
quiries are made of the scholars as to their lessons, as to 
"what the superintendent said to-day," and many a little 
reminder on the part of the children awakens the con- 
science of mother, and even father, in the everyday 
duties of life. 

The true superintendent understands the value of 
special opportunities. He knows that children as well 
as old people are more approachable, susceptible, and 
impressible some times than others. He knows that 
when the community is suffering from "hard times," a 
single friendly visit to make inquiry about "how matters 
are getting along with the family" will do more toward 



56 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

winning both children and parents than a score of ser- 
mons in days of sunshine. He knows that when the 
boys and girls are ill, a little attention will tell more than 
six months of ordinary teaching. He knows the power 
of sympathy expressed in words and in little deeds of 
courtesy and kindness. In his pocket-book there is a 
little slip, handed him every Sabbath evening by the 
secretary of the school, on which may be found the 
names of all the scholars who were reported absent on 
account of sickness, with their places of residence. And 
during the next week, papers, pictures, choice little 
fragrant bouquets, motto cards, and other reminders of 
friendship and sympathy go to these many homes. In 
the weary sick-room the scholars think of Sunday school 
and superintendent and teacher who thus think of them, 
and thinking of these earthly friends, they are very 
likely to think of the heavenly Friend, whose kindness 
and sympathy and patient love they represent. The 
superintendent has a reservoir of sympathy in him, and 
it is not merely expressed in addresses on the platform, 
which may be nothing more than glittering musical 
fountains, pleasant and ornamental, but in many a cup 
of cold water to the thirsty soul amid the heat and weari- 
ness and pain. His love is practical, It is a perpetual 
comment on the law of beneficence set forth in the gos- 
pel; and when, in the lesson for the day, good works, 
charity, sympathy, usefulness, are directly or indirectly 
taught, the scholars all think of their superintendent, 
** and more than one boy has said to another, "That's like 
our superintendent." 

He knows the power of the pulpit. He knows that 
the Sunday school is a "school," and that the peculiar 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 57 

charms and influences of worship and of public dis- 
courses are not secured through its ministrations as they 
are through the public service. He knows the measure 
of educational power in the Sunday school, and he also 
knows that there are elements of power that the Sunday 
school can never possess, and that some of these are 
found only in connection with the sanctuary. He there- 
fore always talks as though it were as important for 
every little child to attend public service as to be in the 
primary or intermediate class. He announces the 
preaching. His teachers keep a record of all the 
scholars who attend preaching. He calls for the public 
recitation of the last text that was preached from by the 
minister. A particularly good point in the last sermon 
is sometimes repeated by the superintendent before the 
school. In church he sits where he can watch the mem- 
bers of the school as they may be distributed through 
the congregation, and little improprieties of behavior 
are delicately reproved before the school or in private. 
Through his influence there are more thoughtfulness, 
reverence, and attention in the public congregation, and 
the singing is heartier. The superintendent teaches his 
school to pray for the preacher. He says that when 
ministers go into the pulpit to preach they depend for 
their success upon the special blessing of the Holy Spirit, 
and that the hearer also depends upon this blessing for 
the profit which is to be derived from the sermon. Even 
little children have been known to lisp their prayers at 
mother's side, that the preacher may have the help of 
Heaven. And this goodly service on the part of their 
superintendent tells in many ways upon the preacher, 
the official board, and the congregation at large. It pro- 



58 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

motes the unity of the church; it promotes in silent 
ways spiritual power ; it gives strength to every depart- 
ment of church enterprise; it avoids everything like 
collision and rivalry between church and school ; it pre- 
vents apathy on the part of both. The pulpit and the 
superintendent's desk are very near to each other in the 
true superintendent's church. 

The wise superintendent knows the power of the 
secular school. He knows that as parents, companions, 
and the weekly papers have their power and influence 
over his pupils, so do the day-school teachers. He 
remembers that the example of a teacher five days in a 
week, representing as he does the largest things in the 
boy's horizon, may neutralize or help the spiritual work 
which the school aims to promote. He remembers also 
that a large part of the trials which the average Sunday- 
school scholar experiences comes in connection with the 
discipline and tasks of the day school ; that temptations 
to dishonesty, unfairness, encouragement, revenge, are 
strewn all along the week, from Monday morning to 
Friday night. He remembers the power of education 
for good or evil; the power of literary ambition; the 
tendency of a certain kind of culture to weaken the faith 
of childhood in the divine origin of the Bible and the 
church He therefore studies the Sunday lessons with 
his eyes open to the temptations and demands of every- 
day-school life. He cultivates the acquaintance of secu- 
lar teachers, and enters into their spirit. Through them 
he studies the peculiar perils of school-life of childhood. 
He talks to his school now and then about conscientious- 
ness in study, honesty in recitation, magnanimity and 
fairness on the playground, sympathy toward their poor 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 59 

and less highly favored schoolmates. He so teaches, on 
the Sabbath, truths which pertain to God as the Cause 
of all things and the King and Father of all men, and 
to the ethics of school-life, that in the recitation room 
and on the playground the scholars sometimes think of 
the superintendent, his exhortations, and frequent re- 
minders of duty. The secular school is benefited by the 
moral tone thus developed, but until the day of judg- 
ment it will never be known who inspired it. 

He believes in the training of the children and youth 
of his school in habits of intelligent, practical, next-door, 
and world-wide benevolence. He believes that love is 
helpful. One may sing songs about charity and cling 
tenaciously to his money, as one may chant about the 
heavenly life and live the life of a brute. He knows 
that the ideal is one thing and that real life is another. 
He therefore thinks much over the problem, How can I 
inspire my pupils to resolve dreams into deeds, songs 
into service, love into life ? Scholars may become apt 
in all branches of Biblical knowledge, and teachers may 
have tact in communicating and eliciting such knowl- 
edge, and be able on "state occasions" to make brilliant 
display of their pupils' power and attainments. He re- 
members that the knowledge of the Bible is valuable 
only when it distills its genial and potent influences 
from the head into the heart, and exerts them in the 
everyday life. He is therefore famous for his mis- 
sionary zeal. Believing that charity begins at home, he 
centres the education of his pupils upon this world 
rather than upon the new Jerusalem above. He teaches 
them, by every lesson where the thought can be intro- 
duced, that love must work itself out in the kitchen, 



60 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

dining-room, parlor, schoolroom, on the playground, in 
the street, and all this three hundred and sixty-five days 
six hours every year. He tells his pupils that the love 
of the gospel makes little people sympathetic and useful ; 
leads them to bear one another's burdens; to remove 
father and mother's anxiety ; to stand by the abused and 
poor and weak boys on the playground; to sympathize 
with the unfortunate rather than to ridicule them; to 
visit sick people, young and old; to offer their services 
in homely, practical ways ; and, in order to do all this, 
to deny themselves ease, luxury, self-indulgence in many 
little things ; for, he says, if little people accustom them- 
selves, out of sympathy for other people, to self-denial 
in trifles, when they become older and larger they will 
meet and resist the more dangerous temptations of life. 
In this way the superintendent cultivates the home soil 
and the home seed, and thus prepares the seed-corn for 
the world-wide fields of the foreign missionary work. 
He broadens the thoughts of his school by presenting the 
claims of China, India, and every other part of the 
globe. He brings before his school maps, relics, pic- 
tures, letters from missionaries, living missionaries who 
are at home ; and by means also of missionary papers, 
magazines, and books, missionary concerts, essays, re- 
sponsive services and songs, he makes the whole world 
centre in his schoolroom, and in earnest prayer for 
tribes and tongues he impresses his pupils with the idea 
that the race is one, redeemed by one Lord, invited to 
one heaven, bound by cords of brotherhood to love and 
help each other ; and thus connects the spirit of unselfish 
love at home with the necessities of the widest sphere 
of possible service abroad. The superintendent attends 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 61 

also to the claims of benevolence besides that of the for- 
eign missionary work. He gives attention, and causes 
his whole school to give attention, to the work of every 
great benevolent society under the auspices of the church 
with which his school is identified — Sunday School 
Union, Tract Society, Board of Education, Freedmen's 
Aid, Temperance Reform, Prevention of Cruelty to 
Animals, and Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Sup- 
pression of Vice, and every other association by which 
the thoughts and sympathies of young people may turn 
in the direction of human need and of the divine provi- 
sions. With the distribution of papers and the giving 
of instruction through addresses, lectures, sermons, he 
connects a plan of systematic giving. In the superin- 
tendent's Sunday school even the little children of the 
primary department give so many pennies every year to 
every department of Church benevolence, and at the end 
of the year carry home to their parents a little state- 
ment of the amount of money which each one has con- 
tributed to all the great institutions of the church. He 
thus lays the foundations, firm and broad, for a church 
membership in the future that shall express the love 
they profess by usefulness to the objects of their sym- 
pathy, near and remote. 

The ideal superintendent believes in the Holy Catho- 
lic Church. He belongs to one branch of it. Nobody 
doubts that. His name has been on the record of the 
church for years. He goes to his own branch of the 
church twice every Sabbath, besides attending the Sun- 
day school every session. He attends the social meet- 
ings of his church. He studies its denominational 
standards of doctrine and usage. He knows he is one 



62 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

thing instead of being another; and everybody else 
knows this. He subscribes for his own church papers ; 
he supplies his religious library with the publication of 
his own church publishing house. He trains his chil- 
dren at home to love their own and stand by it. Watch- 
ing him through the year, and seeing how devoted he is 
to his particular denomination, a superficial observer 
might call him a bigot ; but a bigot he certainly is not. 
He loves to recite the Apostles' Creed. He tries to be- 
lieve that that creed came down from the very earliest 
century. He is glad to stand side by side with brethren 
of other denominations in union meetings, and with 
them sing and pray. He attends union Sunday-school 
conventions. He does his best to maintain in his com- 
munity a local union normal class, and one reason he 
has for holding a denominational class is that it may 
contribute to the enthusiasm and profitableness of the 
union meeting. He observes with his brethren and the 
other denominations the "Days of Prayer." He loves 
to do it. One of the strong arguments to his mind in 
favor of the International Lesson System is the union of 
all denominations which it promotes. He loves to sit 
down with brethren of other churches and compare notes 
with them, to see how far he and they can go together ; 
and when they have diverged he is glad to find how the 
divergence belongs often rather to the metaphysical than 
to the experimental and practical realm of thought. He 
never seems to detect unfair, sectarian policies. If 
some other superintendent acts shabbily for sectarian 
reasons, this superintendent never seems to notice it. 
He goes on quietly, and loves on fervently, and in every 
case the other person has grown ashamed of his course. 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 63 

The superintendent never says anything from the desk 
that would lead a single pupil to suppose that he did not 
have faith in all who profess the name of Christ. He 
scorns the little dodges and devices for building up his 
own school at the expense of other schools. He says 
that our church is only a branch of the Holy Catholic 
Church ; that the other denominations are also branches ; 
that Christ is the Head of all, and that it is not in 
dogma, but in love, that the relation to Christ is to be 
found. He does not call other denominations his 
"neighbors" or "second cousins;" he calls them his 
"brethren and sisters in Christ." By this double con- 
viction of his concerning the value of denominational 
loyalty and the glory of catholic community, he trains 
his Sunday school to be strong in itself, in its imme- 
diate denominational lines, and in its alliances with the 
whole church of our Lord Jesus Christ. On the theory 
and by the policy of the superintendent dissensions 
would soon cease, Christian people would come fairly to 
discuss together their points of difference, and rapidly 
and widely the kingdom of truth, righteousness, and 
charity would extend in this world ! 

An old gentleman in a Western Sunday-school con- 
vention, when the subject now under consideration was 
presented to the meeting, said, "Mr. President, I think 
that God has not made many good superintendents. " 
The old man erred in this. A marble block has in it all 
the capabilities of the most exquisite statue, if the right 
artist will but apply himself to it with an ideal and a 
purpose. There are more good superintendents than the 
old man supposed, but they are uncarved and unquar- 
ried. Thousands of men have the qualifications neces- 



64 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

sary to make them most successful Sunday-school super- 
intendents, but they are to be sought out, and encour- 
aged, and trained, and assisted, in order to develop the 
powers that are within them. God always provides work- 
men to carry on his work. If any place be vacant, it is 
because the leaders of the church do not go into the 
market-place and employ those who wait for a call and 
an opportunity. 

The best superintendent for the particular school is 
somewhere to be found. He should be found in the 
church to which the school belongs, or it may be that he 
is to be found in some other church of the same or other 
denomination. While it is well for every church to 
carry on its work within itself, it is sometimes a good 
thing for a church to receive assistance from the outside. 
Especially where strong denominational feelings which 
assume the odious form of sectarianism have become 
very intense in a church, it may be in the divine order 
that this church shall be taught, through the earnest 
labor of an outside brother of some other denomination, 
that the true church of Christ is one, and that God will 
not allow us to build up little inclosures, hiding our- 
selves from others and shutting others from ourselves, 
and then assuming to be the church of Christ. 

The true superintendent should be found in some 
church. It is indeed possible that once in a while we 
may be compelled, on the frontier or under peculiar cir- 
cumstances, to use men who are not members of any 
church. In all parts of the country it may be necessary 
to call in as workers non-professors, but we regard the 
plan as objectionable (as it is, of course, exceptional) 
from the simple fact that the church is a separate 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 65 

body. It is not of the world, but Christ has called it 
out of the world; and, having a special religious 
mission to man, it is in the highest degree important 
that the men who in official position represent it should 
themselves really be representatives of its spirit and 
power and influence. 

The true superintendent may be found among the old 
men of the church. I do not believe in the "dead line 
of fifty." I know many men who have reached seventy 
and are still as fresh and wise in counsel, as vigorous in 
service, as versatile in device, and as enthusiastic in 
spirit as our best young men. Too often we take it for 
granted that because a man's locks are silver his heart 
has grown slow and heavy, and his intellect lost its 
power. 

The superintendent of whom we are in quest may be 
found among the young men of the church. The old 
proverb, "No man is without honor save in his own 
country," is now more frequently illustrated in the case 
of young men in the church than among any other class. 
A young brother, known from his earliest boyhood, as- 
sumes with difficulty the air, style, and responsibilities 
of a full-grown man, and where official promotion is to 
be conferred the church is not disposed to advance him. 
This is sometimes because of a reasonable fear that such 
promotion may have a bad effect upon the young man, 
developing vanity in him, or in some other way doing 
him damage. Caution is wise; but we remember that 
Nazareth and Capernaum rejected the wisest and best 
of teachers, because, having known Him from childhood 
and through His early manhood, they supposed that they 
thoroughly understood and measured Him. This error 
5 



66 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

led them to depreciate His power, and thus they failed 
to reap the benefits of His blessed ministry. There are 
young men in every church who are to be the office- 
bearers of the future. It is the duty of the mature 
Christians of to-day to prepare such young men for 
the responsibilities which are in after life to devolve 
upon them, and as it is good for a young man to 
bear the yoke in his youth, they should be the first to 
select such candidates for official dignities, and to 
train them with judgment and affection and tender- 
ness for the department of service to which God may 
call them. 

The superintendent may be brought from another 
neighborhood. I have heard the recommendation that 
superintendents of Sunday schools be employed as are 
ministers or as the principals of schools, and that one 
may be paid to conduct two or more schools on each 
Lord's day, giving them as much attention during the 
week as may be necessary to their development. I do 
not commend the idea usually associated with this of 
paying such men for their services, although I see no 
special objection to it under peculiar circumstances, and 
I do not hesitate to say that when a man has a special 
aptitude for such work, it will be wise to extend as far 
as possible his labors beyond the community in which 
he lives. 

The best superintendents may after all be women. 
This, however, I think, is rarely the case. But why 
should we refuse to elect a sensible woman to the super- 
intendency, if she have tact to govern and to teach, when 
there is no one else to take her place ? We have strong 
convictions on the subject of "woman's sphere," and are 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 67 

very slow to accept what we regard as dangerous modern 
heresies on this subject; at the same time we must avoid 
that extreme theory which would prevent a wise and 
godly woman from exercising her gifts as a Sunday- 
school superintendent where there is no one else to do 
the work as effectively as herself. 

But let us remember that it is impossible to find 
perfection either in personal qualifications, personal 
character, administrative ability, or general scholarship ; 
and what our superintendents lack in these respects the 
church must itself supplement by patience, forbearance, 
diligence, and fidelity. Modest talent may be encour- 
aged and developed by sympathy, by prayer, by kind 
words, by prudent commendation. The very qualities 
which give a superintendent power most easily expose 
him to self -depreciation and discouragement. The sen- 
sitiveness which enables him to govern well and produce 
good impressions, is likely to turn in upon himself in 
depression and humiliation. Therefore let the church 
come to his support. Let the pastor consult and counsel 
with him. Let the officers of the church recognize him 
as one of their number, and show him by words and by 
their personal presence that they appreciate the respon- 
sibilities of his position. 

Each school, by the constitution under which it was 
organized, has its provisions for the election of a super- 
intendent. These provisions may not be of the wisest 
character. No difficulties may have been experienced 
up to the present time, but one never knows when 
advantage may be taken of defective constitutional 
regulations by factious or ill-advised persons. It is, 
therefore, of great importance that the constitution be 



68 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

constructed on true principles, so that no room be left 
for such interference with the order and prosperity 
of the school. iSTew constitutions should be modeled 
and old constitutions modified on the following prin- 
ciples : 

1. The pastor of the church should have a voice in 
the selection of the superintendent. The Sunday school 
is a part of the church. It performs a very important 
function in the work of the church — that of teaching 
the Word of God. Whatever may be said of the pastor's 
relation to the church temporalities, there can be no 
question as to his responsibility in all parts of the 
church service which relate to the instruction of the 
people. Tie is commissioned to "feed the flock of God." 
He is called and ordained to be a "teacher." He is 
responsible for the doctrines taught in his church. The 
Sunday-school teachers are his assistants. They are 
supposed to take their key-note from him. He is re- 
sponsible for heresies which creep into his church, 
whether through "false teachers" admitted into his own 
pulpit or allowed a place in his Sunday school. He 
cannot secure the wholesome training of his people while 
any part of the teaching force of the church is beyond 
his reach. Just so far, therefore, as a superintendent 
has influence in the matter of organizing classes, ap- 
pointing teachers, determining the programme of the 
school, influencing the subject-matter and the method of 
the instruction which is given there, it is necessary that 
the chief pastor and teacher of the church shall have 
a voice in his selection. The pastoral part of the super- 
intendent's work, the moral and personal influence 
which his position enables him to wield, thereby affect- 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 69 

ing the tone and temper of the church, furnishes another 
reason why the chief pastor should be sharer in the 
ecclesiastical act by which a man is elevated to so high 
and responsible a position as that of assistant pastor — 
for as such, undoubtedly, we must regard every Sunday- 
school superintendent. 

2. The officers or governing body of the church 
should have a voice in the selection of the Sunday-school 
superintendent. All questions which affect the order 
and discipline of the church are in some way involved 
in the Sunday school as at present constituted and con- 
ducted. Not only in matters of doctrine, but also in the 
things which pertain to discipline and government, the 
school is an important factor. The superintendent can 
modify the tone, the spirit, and the ecclesiastical theories 
and sympathies of a school. He can quietly depreciate 
or exalt the church in the estimation of teachers and 
pupils. He can contribute to its prosperity, or imper- 
ceptibly but certainly alienate his constituency from 
it. The board of government in any local church, ves- 
try, committee, session, or quarterly conference, should 
therefore have a firm hold upon the institution and 
its officers, which thus affect for weal or woe the 
church for the government of which they are held 
responsible. 

3. The teachers of the Sunday school should have a 
voice in the selection of the superintendent. They do 
the heaviest part of the work, and their service is volun- 
tary. They understand the demands and the difficulties 
of the case. They are likely to have the interests of the 
church at heart. They are usually among its most judi- 
cious and godly members. From the very beginning 



70 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

they have been the governing power in the school, and 
while the direct authority of the church should be intro- 
duced into the board of management, there is no reason 
why the teachers should be deprived of their long- 
possessed and legitimate prerogative. 

4. The pupils of the school should have no voice in 
the election of the superintendent. The adult members 
of the school, if they are church members, are already 
represented in the "official members" of the church 
above referred to; if not church members, there is a 
manifest impropriety in giving them the right of suf- 
frage. The juvenile members of the school have no 
more claim to this right in the Sunday school than in 
the day school. They do not enjoy the privilege of vot- 
ing for their own teachers or superintendents in any 
institution of learning, from the primary school to the 
university. Why should we make the Sunday school an 
exception? There is enough "pushing forward" of 
young America already, without giving him ecclesias- 
tical privileges which he is incompetent justly to appre- 
ciate or wisely to use. We have known more than one 
school which has been seriously damaged by the excite- 
ments and rivalries of elections in which children, even 
on the Sabbath, engaged in the demoralizing struggle 
between candidates concerning whom they were incom- 
petent to form a just opinion. A most unfavorable re- 
sult is likely to follow in the administration of the 
school when "popularity" is the standard by which a 
superintendent is judged and chosen. There is already 
too strong a tendency toward laxity in administration 
and frivolity in the spirit of the school. What will be 
the effect of an appeal to the tastes and preferences of 



THE SUPERINTENDENT. 71 

growing girls and boys in the selection of a superin- 
tendent ? More than ever will the school be a place of 
sociality and freedom, and less and less will be found of 
the much-needed and much-neglected spirit of restraint 
and reverence and religious sobriety.* 

* For numerous hints and plans by which the superintendent and pastor 
may increase an intelligent interest in the work of the Sunday school and 
collateral agencies for the benefit of young people, see Appendix B. 



72 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



CHAPTEE VI. 

THE TEACHER. 

The school, whether its work be among the higher 
lines of Christian meditation and conversation, the 
lower lines of Biblical teaching, or the lowest lines of 
mission effort, must be provided with teachers — chief 
teachers and subordinate teachers. Everything in the 
school depends upon the work of the teacher. How to 
secure true and effective teachers is the most important 
problem in connection with every department and every 
kind of Sunday-school work. The singing, the talking, 
the order, the library books, the architecture, the appli- 
ances, the lesson helps, are all subordinate elements. 
The superintendent is chiefly valuable to a school as he 
is able to select good teachers and protect them in their 
work, guaranteeing them opportunity for holding the 
uninterrupted attention of the pupils. 

As nearly everything in the school depends upon the 
teacher, so nearly everything in the teacher depends 
upon his aims. He may have low aims or high, and 
there are "highest aims'' which he should have. 

He may aim at entertaining his pupils, pleasing the 
fancy, quieting the conscience, exciting the sense of 
humor, kindling and gratifying curiosity, and giving 
to the half-hour of the class recitation the charm of a 
parlor chat, full of bright stories and bon mots and 
flashes of genius. 



THE TEACHER. 73 

He may aim at winning the personal regard and 
admiration of his pupils. He wants them to love him 
and praise him — to say appreciative things to his face 
and give good report of him behind his back. 

He may aim at making his pupil "a good scholar/' 
that he may know every lesson, recite titles and golden 
texts, commit the catechism, be ready for general re- 
views, and for home reports of the teacher's efficiency. 

He may aim at churchly ends — the training of the 
pupil to love his own church above all the rest, know 
its doctrinal formulas, be able to defend its peculiari- 
ties, be loyal to its service, and everywhere and always 
sustain it against all critics and fault-finders. 

But there are still higher aims for the true Sunday- 
school teacher — "the highest aims — conversion, spiritual 
culture, and the formation of character." The personal 
relations of the soul to God transcend all other conceiv- 
able things. The true aim of the pupil to live a life 
well-pleasing to God, out of a heart full of the Spirit of 
God, with a will set on the entire and perpetual service 
of God — this is the end constantly aimed at by the best 
Sunday-school teacher. And the process by which a 
soul, young or old, is turned from indifference to serious- 
ness concerning the will of God, from selfish ambitions 
and desires to a true love for spiritual and divine things, 
from instability and irresolution to fixed determination 
to live for God and heaven — this is conversion — the 
turning about of the soul. 

After the turning by the force from on high — God's 
will, with the consent of the force within — the personal 
will, there is a long work of "culture" to follow. It is a 
culture of the soul — not by processes of human skill, not 



74 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

by exercise of natural powers, but by the operations of 
the divine Spirit through the instrumentality of the 
divine truth. It is "spiritual culture" — a culture of the 
new forces, of the old powers, through the new truth and 
by the Holy Spirit. It is a culture of love, of patience, 
of will, of resistance, of effort, of submission. It is a 
culture of the spirit and not of the body ; a culture by 
the Holy Spirit and not by mere human resolution or 
circumstances. It is the training of a new Heaven-sent 
seed in the old soil, and the culture of its stalk and 
stems and tendrils till the soul is full of its verdure and 
fragrance and fruitage. 

With the turning and the training come new convic- 
tions, new tendencies, new atmospheres, new tastes, new 
delights, new associations, new triumphs, new habits — a 
new world within and without — and these become fixed 
and established; not by nature, but by grace — grace 
becoming a new life in the old natural forms, new blood 
in the old veins, new energies flashing through the old 
nerves, new visions in the old eyes, new grip-power in 
the old muscles, new thoughts in the old brain, new love 
beating and rolling and resting (with the rest of peace) 
in the old heart. Thus is character fixed — by grace and 
not by nature, by the Spirit and not by human culture, 
and as the years go by the man is built up in righteous- 
ness and true holiness. He loves the things he once 
loathed. He delights in God. The flesh hath no more 
dominion over him. Struggle he has — long continued 
and fierce — but he conquers. He learns to interpret 
certain Scripture terms and texts which before this w r ere 
only English words for Greek equivalents — words out 
of the dictionary, representations of certain religious 



THE TEACHER. 75 

ideas. JXow these words break and blaze and burn and 
bleed with deep meanings, meanings that go down deep 
into his soul. "Strive" now T means strive, and "fight" 
fight, and "endure" endure. After a while the frail 
body falls off, and he walks in the world above with the 
God he sought and served in the world below, and ac- 
counts himself, even in the spotless glory and purity of 
heaven, a sinner saved by grace. 

This, O Sunday-school teacher, is the aim — the high- 
est aim — of your office. It is a great work, reaching 
inward even to the sacred center of the soul's life, reach- 
ing upward even to the throne of God, reaching forward 
even to an endless eternity. 

"Who is sufficient for these things ?" Remember the 
words of the Master, "Without Me ye can do nothing." 
Remember the words of Paul, "I can do all things 
through Christ which strengthened me." 

The manifold and important aims of the Sunday- 
school work demand workers abundantly qualified by 
natural and acquired ability. They need wisdom, tact, 
delicacy of perception, amplitude of resource, scientific 
carefulness, industry, and fidelity — indeed, what does 
he not need who is called to the sacred work of spiritual 
oversight and training ? Angels might well tremble to 
assume such holy duty. It is a work upon souls, for 
eternity, under divine inspection, with divine agencies, 
and is dependent upon divine inspirations. Verily, he 
who feels called to this ministry may with the apostle 
exclaim, "Who is sufficient for these things ?" 

The leaders who most appreciate this work are most 
faithful in holding up lofty standards. They paint it in 
glowing colors. They weight it with responsibility. 



76 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

They connect it with the most solemn realities of this 
life, and with the more impressive realities of death and 
the grave, of a judgment-day, and the gateways of irre- 
versible destiny. One trembles before an ideal so lofty 
that his head grows dizzy, and so brilliant that his eyes 
are dazzled. He cries out, "Who is sufficient for these 
things ?" 

It is just then that he begins to be "sufficient," for 
in this work "our sufficiency is of God." When the 
teacher of souls is "weak, then he is strong." When the 
feeble three hundred cry, "The sword of the Lord, and 
of Gideon," the triumph comes. Broken pitchers — 
storms of power ! Human qualifications are not to be 
despised, but they are valuable only when harnessed 
into God's order and made mediums of God's energy. 
Scholarship, native mettle, magnetic power, vigorous 
health, rhetorical grace, logical force — these are useful 
when divinely called and consecrated and controlled. 
We commend the leaders who are full of divine ideals 
concerning a divine work — ideals that drive a man to 
God, and that wring from his anxious soul (oppressed 
by a sense of the vastness and delicacy and sacredness of 
his work) the cry of human discouragement, "Who is 
sufficient for these things ?" 

With an overflowing sense of personal insufficiency, 
and with a supporting and inspiring sense of divine 
grace, the teacher is ready for the preparation in matters 
intellectual and professional upon which so much de- 
pends. These are light matters, indeed, when compared 
with the weightier matters of motive and divine con- 
ditions and divine operations, but they are not unim- 
portant. In the running of a ship there are many 



THE TEACHER. 77 

essential things besides steam and rudder and pilot. 
Indeed, some very little omission or mistake may make 
steam, rudder, and pilot ineffective. Thus compass and 
rudder-post become quite as important as captain and 
engine. 

The teacher needs qualifications for his work. Al- 
though he depends upon God, he is in an important 
sense "a worker together with God." I do not say that 
God cannot do without him. God has done without 
men. What the Infinite can or cannot do is not a profit- 
able subject for our speculations. It is enough to know 
that in the earthly conduct of the kingdom of God's 
grace He does not do without men. He uses men every- 
where. He seems to depend upon them. When they 
fail, His schemes seem, at least for the time, to fail. So 
that while I am always to remember that the Infinite 
One can do without the thought and enterprise and 
energy of the finite workers, I am also to remember that 
God's work is to be carried on to its glorious consumma- 
tion through such finite workers, and that in their work 
the human conditions and methods are to be discovered 
and observed, as though God were limited by laws, and 
dependent upon the sense and skill and service of His 
creatures. 

The qualifications of the worker are determined by 
the kind and quality of the work to be performed. As 
the Sunday-school teacher is to perform a service affect- 
ing the mental, moral, and spiritual character of his 
pupils, he needs mental, moral, and spiritual qualifica- 
tions that he himself may have the kind of light he 
wishes to shed upon the pupils, and the quality of force 
he desires to convey to them. Like produces like. The 



78 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

teacher of art must be an artist ; the teacher of mathe- 
matics, a mathematician ; the trainer of muscle, an ath- 
lete ; the builder of character, a man of character, with 
knowledge, moral conviction, and spiritual insight. 
Such is the high office of the Sunday-school teacher, and 
such the demands made upon him. 

" 'Tis not a cause of slight import 

This holy work demands, 
But what might fill an angel's heart, 
And filled the Saviour's hands." 

1. The Sunday-school teacher's spiritual qualifica- 
tions must first be considered. He should know the 
truth of God by spiritual perception, by which process 
alone it can be real to him. Inner eyes must see it, 
inner senses apprehend it. The heart must feel it. He 
must see God. He must see Christ. He must "sense" 
divine things. His knowledge must be beyond reason. 
He may have difficulties with human statements of 
divine doctrine. They may tire and trouble and con- 
fuse him. He may be poor at definition and at discus- 
sion. But he must feel the reality of soul, and of moral 
government, and of character. He must know by this 
interior power of knowing that the Christ is, and that 
He is Mediator, and that souls depend on Him for 
acceptance and guidance and strength. 

These things he may "see" by faith. His faith may 
be feeble or strong, fluctuating or steady, but it must 
force unseen verities on him so that he cannot easily rid 
himself of them. Sin against them must sting him. 
Conformity to their demands must give him a sense of 
harmony and peace. He must have an inclination of 
heart toward them — the inclination growing into desire, 



THE TEACHER. 79 

the desire becoming an insatiate "hungering and thirst- 
ing after righteousness." 

The spiritual life must be fed by spiritual pabulum. 
He must know enough to take the food by law of self- 
discipline where desire is faint. He must force himself 
into the conditions that favor spiritual growth. He 
must do it. He will do it. He reads the books that 
foster spiritual life. He goes to helpful meetings. He 
listens to wholesome sermons. He associates with spir- 
itually minded people. He knows that he is sluggish, 
and forces himself into action. He knows that the air- 
cells are inert, and goes out of doors and fills every cell 
with fresh, invigorating air. He exercises every spirit- 
ual muscle that he may have grip and power. He knows 
the room he lives in is dark. He forces open the win- 
dow till it is flooded with light — the light of heaven. 

The Sunday-school teacher does one thing more to 
increase spiritual power. He abstains from all things 
that tend to religious dissipation — books, companion- 
ships, amusements. He believes in society and in read- 
ing and in recreation, but he distinguishes between the 
true and the false, the rational and the sensuous. He 
allows no game, no conversation, no book, to weaken his 
faith, pervert his tastes, or divert him from the supreme 
aim of a true life. He is as faithful to the laws of spir- 
itual culture as he was in school-days to the demands of 
his intellectual nature. He does not waste energies on 
parties, cards, and theatres, and then growl at books 
and teachers because he is dull at prayer and study. 

He also cultivates his "spirituality" by bringing it 
to play on others — chiefly on his family, and then on his 
pupils. He talks, prays, trains, guards, helps, and this 



80 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

in every conceivable way for the promotion of spiritual 
life in others. They come to believe in him, and to be- 
lieve that he believes in all the truth he teaches. He ac- 
quires facility of speech on sacred subjects — that facility 
that requires few words and no assumed tones. His life 
talks. His eyes talk. His tone talks. 

Blessed is the class in Sunday school whose teacher 
is an incarnation of spiritual conviction, taste, and 
power ! 

2. There are moral qualifications to be considered. 
Strange to say, there is a semblance of spirituality which 
is merely sentimentality, and deceives many. It has 
ideals and longings, and takes to poetry and devout read- 
ing. It has its conventional affectations. ISTow it is 
Thomas a Kempis, and now Miss Havergal. It muses 
and melts, and lifts its eyes heavenward like Carlo 
Dolci's Magdalen. It sighs and sings. It waits, in its 
way, and weeps. It talks — in a tender and melancholy 
strain. It is only a case of acute or chronic aestheticism. 
Rome is full of it. It feeds Ritualism. It runs also in 
unliturgical revivals now and then. It is a fever against 
which religious people need to guard. For it is very 
shallow alid very soft. Sunday-school teachers should 
watch against it. 

It is not difficult to distinguish between the true and 
the artificial. The moral test is the sure one. When 
conscience is sensitive, and the will submissive, and the 
life consistent, there is no doubt about one's spirituality. 

When the soul sings, "I delight to do Thy will, O 
God," and then does delight to do God's will, or does the 
will of God from firm resolve, there can be no doubt. 
When one loathes sin, and tries to leave it — all sin, all 



THE TEACHER. 81 

kinds of sin — sin against the body, sin against the soul, 
sin against the neighbor, sin against Christ and the 
Father — there is no difficulty in reaching a decision as 
to the genuineness of Christian character. It is no 
mirage. The garden of the Lord is there. 

The Sunday-school teacher teaches for eternity, but 
also for time. He is to train saints for the heavenly 
life. But it is quite as important that saints be raised 
up to enrich the earthly life. London, ISTew York, and 
Chicago are in as much need of saints as the new Jeru- 
salem. Our Sunday schools must cultivate morality, 
decency, sobriety, honesty, good neighborship, patriot- 
ism. The teacher of boys and of girls must be honor- 
able, obedient to law, conscientious, an example in every- 
day life of the moral standards presented in the Holy 
Scriptures. He must exalt law by respecting it — man's 
law and God's law. 

3. The mental qualifications of the Sunday-school 
teacher are of subordinate importance, but are not to be 
depreciated. The teacher must teach. Therefore he 
must know. Therefore he must cultivate the powers by 
which he can know and teach. He must increase his 
capacity and ability by self-discipline, by wise direction, 
by constant use. 

He must know the subject-matter he is to teach — the 
text-book — its authority and contents. 

He must know the soul he is to teach — its origin, 
worth, exposure, possibilities, and the laws of its trend 
and activity. 

He must know the phenomena, forces, and laws of the 
kingdom into which he would bring and nurture that 
soul — the reality of it, and its blessedness. 
6 



82 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

He must know this world out of which he leads his 
pupil — the charms of it, the dangers which throng its 
highways and which lurk in its secret places, its atmo- 
spheres, literatures, institutions, and policies. 

He must know the laws of access to souls, and of 
influence over souls — how to begin, when to stop, when 
to speak and when to be silent, what doubts to assail, 
what motives to excite, what helpers to command. 

He must have self-command, that his mental forces 
may do his bidding — assailing, concentrating, conciliat- 
ing, retiring, as circumstances require. 

He should be trained for his work by listening to 
practical and experienced counsellors, by reading good 
text-books, by practicing on the pupils next to him and 
most needing him, and by attending teachers' meetings, 
normal classes, and conventions, picking up hints, col- 
lecting material, receiving stimulus and encouragement. 

He should speak good plain English, pronouncing his 
words as accurately as possible, eschewing all affecta- 
tions and mere niceties of speech, putting what he has to 
say in a clear, forcible way, so that his pupils will be 
led to say something of their own thinking out, because 
of the force and freshness of his thought and the wise 
adaptation of his words to their wants. 

The more intellectual power and scholarship, Biblical 
and general, possessed by the Sunday-school teacher, 
the better for his pupils and himself — if, and always if, 
he teach out of a heart full of spiritual sense and divine 
love. Of the professional training of the teacher I shall 
speak at length in another chapter. 

A soul alive to the things of God, a conscience sensi- 
tive and uncompromising, an intellect able to seek, hold, 



THE TEACHER. 83 

and apply the truth with wisdom and energy to the soul 
in need of it — these are the essential qualifications of 
the Sunday-school teacher. 

And in the hands of humble obedience to the voice of 
conscience; in the pursuit of mental grasp by daily 
thoughtfulness and by devout reading and study of the 
Scriptures ; in the tender care for our pupils and in the 
fervent pleadings of the closet prayer — may we secure 
the qualifications needed. 

Many true teachers become disheartened by the 
exalted standards which are placed before them. So do 
artists. But all true artists very well understand that 
such moments of self-distrust and agonized longing are 
partial proofs of their calling, and of their fellowship 
with the masters of art who have preceded them. So 
they reassure themselves, and address themselves again 
to the task, bow reverently before the ideal, and press 
forward, strong of will, valiant, and persistent. What 
shall we do, then, with discouraged teachers ? 

1. Congratulate them. He who has found that there 
is something exceedingly desirable which he does not 
possess, will be more likely both to seek and secure it 
than if he vainly imagined himself already the possessor 
of it. 

2. Encourage them to give in detail the several 
grounds for this feeling of discouragement. This simple 
statement of them will be profitable. A good exercise 
is this for a teachers' meeting. 

3. Answer with all frankness the several difficulties 
presented. Dissipate by your most assuring method the 
merely imaginary trouble, and emphatically indorse all 
that you believe to be real. 



84 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

4. Give help. Train, illustrate, drill the teachers. 
If they cannot master the art of questioning, show them 
why, and then show them how. If they, handle illustra- 
tions awkwardly, spend one evening or more in "trying 
on" illustrations, and showing how they may be most 
effectively employed. 

5. If you find your teachers not quite enough dis- 
couraged to bring them regularly to your teachers' 
meeting, try to discourage them a little more. 

When Elisha sought the spirit of Elijah, he sought 
the Holy Spirit of God. When he returned from Moab 
to Jericho through the miraculously opened Jordan, the 
sons of the prophet said, "The spirit of Elijah does rest 
on Elisha." It was not the "mantle" that separated the 
waters of the river, but the "Lord God of Elijah," whose 
power the newly commissioned prophet invoked. 

Sunday-school teachers, you need the same divine 
baptism. The "mantle" of method will accomplish 
nothing unless the energy of the Holy Spirit permeates 
it. Take up the one and fervently invoke the other. 
Then will Jordan in your own way open a path for your 
feet. Then will barren wastes grow fruitful as you 
scatter into the springs the salt of truth. Your enemies 
shall perish. The oil shall pour forth its abundant 
blessings in the homes to which your counsels come. 
Dead souls will live. Lepers will be cleansed. Angelic 
guards will sustain you ; and the very memory of your 
life and character, like the bones of the dead prophet, 
will give life to men after you are in your graves. Seek 
by fervent prayer the light and life of God's own eternal 
Spirit. 



THE NORMAL, CLASS. 85 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE NORMAL CLASS. 

What is a normal class ? The word normal is from 
the Latin norma, a square for trying right angles, thence 
a pattern, a rule, an authorative standard, a model. 
Normal schools are schools in which the true theory of 
education is taught, its true methods illustrated, and its 
pupils trained to teach under judicious and skilled 
scrutiny. 

What is a normal class in secular education ? It is 
a process of training teachers in the best possible man- 
ner to the highest attainable grade of excellence, that 
they in the most effective manner may teach the pupils 
afterward to be committed to their care. It involves, of 
necessity, the acquisition of knowledge, the testing of 
knowledge thus acquired, and the utilizing of such 
knowledge for teaching purposes. 

Among secular educators the importance of normal 
schools, with their distinctive methods, is no longer a 
question for discussion. Dr. William E. Channing, in 
1837, thus pleaded in Boston for an institution in which 
teachers should be professionally trained : "We need an 
institution for the formation of better teachers, and 
until this step is taken we can make no important 
progress. The most crying want in this commonwealth 
is the want of accomplished teachers. We boast of our 
schools, but schools do comparatively little for want of 



86 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

educated instructors. Without good teaching a school 
is but a name. An institution for training men to train 
the young would be a fountain of living waters sending 
forth streams to refresh present and future ages. As 
yet our legislators have denied to the poor laboring 
classes this principal means of elevation. We trust 
they will not always prove blind to the highest interest 
of the State. We want better teachers and more 
teachers for all classes of society ; for rich and poor, for 
children and adults. One of the surest signs of the 
regeneration of society will be the elevation of the art 
of teaching to the highest rank in the community. 
Socrates is now regarded as the greatest man in the age 
of great men. The name of king has grown dim before 
that of apostle. To teach, whether by word or action, 
is the highest function on earth." In nearly all of our 
cities regularly equipped normal schools are established. 
Men and women who are expected to teach literature 
and science to our children are expected to prepare 
themselves for this service. 

The Sunday-school teacher needs just what the 
normal school aims to secure for the secular teacher. 
His work is as important in its aims. He deals with 
the same intellectual powers, and addresses himself in a 
peculiar manner to the more delicate, important, and 
powerful energies of the soul — the conscience, the affec- 
tions, the will. The text-book which he employs is as 
full of difficulties, his pupils are as apathetic. He expe- 
riences the same obstacles in the way of quickening the 
intellect. In his work the curiosity is to be aroused, 
attention concentrated, voluntary, delighted, and per- 
sistent effort to be secured. The Sunday-school normal 



THE KOEMAL CLASS. 87 

class is therefore based upon the same theory as that 
which establishes the secular normal school, and it aims 
at the same worthy and much-needed results. 

The standard of secular education in these days is so 
high, and the appliances employed so perfect, that the 
Sabbath school must elevate its standard if it would 
maintain its power. Children measure their teachers 
in these days. Many of them are able to do it. ISTo sin- 
cerity of character or earnestness of effort can compen- 
sate for a poorly prepared lesson, or for habitual incom- 
petency on the part of a Sunday-school teacher. It is a 
lamentable hindrance to one's success in this field to 
have his scholars contrasting his matter and style of 
teaching with those of ordinary teachers in the public 
schools, or detecting the sophisms or superficial evasions 
of his explanations. It is not only that the teacher suf- 
fers in the estimation of his scholars, but the system of 
truth he represents also suffers loss. 

All truth is divine. We may regard the teachers of 
natural science and mathematics in our public schools 
and academies as so many ambassadors of God to the 
soul of the child. In the Sunday school we have charge 
of another department of divine teaching. Ours is the 
ethical and spiritual, and we deal with intellect. We 
seek to exalt and sanctify it— to connect it with a "pure 
conscience" and a redeemed heart, that it may become 
the throne of a "faith unfeigned." The secular teachers 
tell the little ones of God in nature, we of God in grace. 
They conduct them through the outer courts of the 
cosmos; we lead them beyond the veil, into the inner- 
most sanctuary, where God's voice is heard and where 
man may commune face to face with Him. We must, 



88 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

therefore, be "apt to teach." We are to show ourselves 
"approved" — "workmen that need not to be ashamed, 
rightly dividing the word of truth." Wisely did the 
apostle suggest to Timothy, "Give attendance to reading 
... to doctrine." 

The labor of the Sunday-school teacher is voluntary, 
and performed under the pressure of secular occupa- 
tions. Mothers come to the Sunday school as teachers 
from the nursery, merchants and clerks from the counter 
and counting-room, mechanics from the shop, farmers 
from the field, lawyers from the bar, jurists from the 
bench, physicians from the bedside, students from the 
recitation room. They are engaged six-sevenths of their 
time in callings wholly unconnected with the specific 
work of the Sabbath school. To perform it they turn 
aside from their habitual paths of thought and effort. 
Many of them are wholly deficient in mental discipline, 
and, with no time for preparation, must make sad work 
with the brain of the pupil and the Book of God on the 
Sabbath. 

For other professions regular schools of preparation 
are established, and a curriculum appointed. In the 
school of medicine, law, or theology, the student gives 
his whole time to study. He secures the funds requisite, 
abandons every other enterprise, and devotes all his 
energies to the one work. In the secular normal schools 
the same singleness of purpose and occupation gives the 
student power. He is a man of one work, and he 
succeeds. 

Yet we can have no permanent theological school for 
the training of Sunday-school teachers. Nor can the 
want be realized in every case by teachers' meetings. 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 89 

Something must go before them. A clergyman may 
increase in theological knowledge and pulpit efficiency 
while engaged in appointed clerical labors; but, before 
all this, there is a certain preparatory training which 
fits him for his subsequent efforts, and which is indis- 
pensable to his success. This is no more a necessity of 
the preacher than of the teacher. Even our best schools, 
then, would be benefited by a general plan of teacher 
training. 

But we must remember that first-class Sabbath 
schools, with well-ordered teachers' meetings, are rare 
and exceptional. In many schools the teachers' meeting 
is limited to a small minority of those engaged in the 
Sabbath work. In some schools this meeting is held 
annually, and then for the election of officers; or 
monthly, and merely for the transaction of business. In 
all schools of this class teachers are expected to do their 
work without other specific preparation than they volun- 
tarily give at home to the lesson, and with no previous 
training whatever. 

Suppose, then, that any one school has a corps of good 
teachers and a good teachers' meeting, and suppose it 
does not need any outside help in the culture of its 
teachers, the whole duty of that school is not done when 
it becomes in itself strong, studious, and successful. I 
assert that no school can be thus independent by virtue 
of its own internal strength ; for it still owes sympathy, 
counsel, and assistance to the weaker and less successful 
schools in its neighborhood. 

Whether, therefore, we look at the best or the poorest 
of our schools, the conclusion is forced upon us: We 
must have a general system for the training of teachers 



90 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

— a system that will secure the establishment of regular 
weekly teachers' meetings where they are not now held, 
and provide, in some form or other, a complete prepara- 
tory course of training in connection with those schools 
which have all along sustained the teachers' meeting. 

Conventions, local and general, may render assistance 
by the dissemination of Sunday-school ideas, the com- 
parison of plans, the discussion of principles, and the 
occasional illustration of approved methods. But the 
best convention we ever attended left an important work 
undone. Mere conventions, in which whole counties, 
and even States, are represented, cannot meet the de- 
mand we have specified. The introduction of institute 
exercises, or normal methods, into these conventions, 
has been a means of improving their character. But 
in the midst of these occasional and exceptional exer- 
cises we have asked, Is there not yet something more 
practical — some plan better adapted to the necessities 
of the work ? 

The answer is to be found in the normal class exer- 
cises hereinafter described. 

Let us look at the immediate needs of the Sunday- 
school teacher. First of all, he is a teacher of Chris- 
tianity, and the Bible is his text-book. To be a success- 
ful teacher of Christianity one must he a Christian. 
Having "eyes to see," he must have "seen" the verities 
concerning which he is to testify. These must be in- 
wrought into his personal character. He must have the 
Christian's reputation, the Christian's apprehension, 
the Christian's tone and habit. He who feels and is 
daily dominated by the truth, and he alone, is able to 
teach it. Can the blind teach painting ? Can the deaf 



THE NORMAL, CLASS. 91 

teach music? You remember who asked the question, 
and to whom, "Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest 
not these things ?" 

The Sunday-school teacher should understand the 
language in which he proposes to teach; and the more 
cultivated his pupils, the greater their advantages in the 
secular school, the greater is the importance that he shall 
not offend cultivated taste by violating grammatical law. 
He should have as large lingual resources as possible, a 
vocabulary from which he may select with discretion 
using the right word in the right place, using as few 
words and as many words as may be necessary. And 
still it is but just to say that there are many honest and 
earnest persons who, notwithstanding great ignorance 
and habitual violation of the laws of English grammar, 
are most successful Sunday-school teachers. These 
cases are exceptional. They show what consecrated 
hearts may do. When some one complained to Row- 
land Hill of the blunders in speech of one of his plain 
preachers, Hill replied, "Never mind his breaking gram- 
mar, if the Lord helps him to break the poor sinner's 
heart." So we say concerning this work of Sunday- 
school teaching. Let the truth be taught by earnest 
hearts. Let the living water be dipped from the foun- 
tain and distributed to thirsty souls. If this can be 
done in a golden chalice, well. If God appoint for the 
service some marred or misshapen pitcher, let it also 
drop into the crystal depths, and be borne dripping with 
living waters to the thirsty lips. But these exceptions 
in the line of Divine Providence do not annul the law of 
the best possible human preparation where one attempts 
to do a divinely appointed work. Plain men, indeed, 



92 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

\ 

were the fishermen of Galilee who first taught the gospel, 
but they were not uneducated men. They may not 
have been familar with subtleties of Greek philosophy, 
nor were they accounted "scholars" in the then ap- 
proved Jewish schools. But they were men of native 
strength, trained in the Hebrew Scriptures, and they 
enjoyed intimate fellowship with the wisest of teachers 
for three years. 

The Sunday-school teacher should know a great deal 
about the text-book in which he is the instructor. This 
text-book — the Holy Bible — comes to us with a peculiar 
claim. The teacher, in opening it, professes to open an 
inspired book, by which God, the Creator of all, has 
made known His character and His will to men. It is 
important, therefore, that the teacher understand, at 
least to some extent, the evidences by which the divine 
authenticity of the Bible is established, the men by whom 
its various parts were written, the time and the place of 
writing, the questions of genuineness and translations, 
and the actions of ecclesiastical councils concerning it. 
He should understand the laws of interpretation by 
which we may approach the sacred pages in the right 
spirit, and by the right methods arrive at the sentiments 
which the Divine Author intends to reveal. He should 
understand the contents of the book, first in general out- 
line, and then in detail — its history, chronology, geog- 
raphy, archseological peculiarities, its doctrines which 
relate to God, to man, to the God-man, and to life 
eternal. 

The fact that the text-book of the Sunday-school 
teacher is supernatural, and his work dependent upon 
the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, does not diminish the 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 93 

necessity for the most thorough preparation on his part ; 
for the laws of man's mental activity in the study of the 
Holy Scriptures are the same laws which he must ob- 
serve in any other intellectual operation. The Bible 
has been translated from tongue to tongue. Its versions 
are to be explained, its figures to be interpreted, its 
principles to be traced, its practical applications to be 
made, and its difficulties to be removed, as in the case of 
any other volume written originally in a foreign lan- 
guage, in a remote age, and in countries differing from 
our own in manners and customs, languages, and politi- 
cal institutions. The Bible is not a mint with com- 
pleted coins of gold and silver, stamped and polished, 
and ready for immediate and easy appropriation. It 
is a mountain rather than a mint. In its hidden heart 
are the veins of gold. These are to be sought and dug 
out with prayer and painstaking and patience. 

The Sunday-school teacher should have accurate and 
well-mastered knowledge. He should have thought care- 
fully and examined critically. He should know from 
personal interest and attention, by the delight of his soul 
in truth, and should patiently and with a passion for 
knowledge apply himself to the exploration of the divine 
Word. 

The Sunday-school teacher should know the truth 
from personal experience. He should have faith and 
spiritual discernment. "The natural man receiveth not 
the things of the Spirit: . . . neither can he know 
them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he 
that is spiritual judgeth [discerneth] all things" (1 Cor. 
ii. 14, 15). "The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, 
whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach 



94 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

you all things, and bring all things to your remem- 
brance, whatsoever I have said unto you" (John xiv. 
26). He who has felt the power of the gospel is able to 
proclaim and apply its precious truths/ 

He must know the wide range and relations of truth. 
To know one thing well one must know many things. 
In order to form an adequate idea of Abram's position 
and conduct as he stood on the Judsean hills and made 
the magnanimous proposition to Lot, one must have in 
his mind's eye the antecedents of both men : the double 
call of Abram, when living beyond the Euphrates, the 
first entrance into the land, the anxiety which led him 
into Egypt, and the return from Egpyt to the place of 
the altar between Bethel and Ai, where this interesting 
event occurred. The Sunday-school teacher, to teach 
successfully particular lessons, must gather inspiration 
from general conceptions relative to persons and locali- 
ties and antecedent experiences. He must know more 
about a subject than he intends to communicate in a 
specific lesson. The immense body of water in the 
reservoir among the hills gives force to the jet in the 
fountain in the city park. Large resources of knowl- 
edge give peculiar power to the simplest teaching 
efforts in the class. 

He must know how to grow in knowledge. Every 
effort at acquiring knowledge and communicating 
knowledge should be to him an inspiration, and the 
means to higher attainments. The teacher, at the close 
of a year of work, should be able to find the largest re- 
sult in his own mental and spiritual life. Now, there 
is a way of knowing which proves a means of growth, 
and there is, on the other hand, a way of knowing which 



THE ^TOKMAL CJLASS. 95 

provides truth for an immediate emergency, but does 
not apply it to the fountains of character, intellectual 
and spiritual. 

He must know his pupils — the peculiarities of human 
nature, the laws of mental life and growth, or of 
deterioration. He must know the wide variety 
of forces, habits, and moods in human nature; the 
prejudices of education, the all-dominating energy of 
habit, the important and peculiar antagonisms of 
social grades, or external conditions. He only who 
knows the needs and defects of human nature can 
apply the gospel which proposes to supply the need and 
remove the defect. 

He must know what other teachers have discovered 
in their experiences, reading the records of their tempo- 
rary methods, defeats, failures, and successes. 

The Sunday-school teacher must know the laws of 
teaching, and the methods which the right observance of 
these laws develop. 

He must have ability to originate methods of his own. 
There is an empiricism in teaching which, without look- 
ing for the underlying philosophy, experiments upon 
some suggested method, and often confounds seeming 
with real success. Therefore the Sunday-school teacher, 
like the secular teacher, should know the principle, and, 
in his intense eagerness to quicken minds to thoughtful- 
ness and self -application, should devise methods which 
are his own. 

In order to know and to teach what he knows, that 
his pupils may know and grow under his ministry, the 
Sunday-school teacher should, in his preparatory 
studies, see other and expert teachers at their work. 



96 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

With his knowledge of principle and method, he should 
be able to observe the application of these by those who 
are his superiors. 

The Sunday-school teacher must practice, and 
practice, and practice. By manipulating the keys of 
an instrument the pupil acquires f acility, and with ap- 
parent involuntariness goes through difficult exercises 
which at first occasioned him weariness, annoyance, and 
temporary discouragement. Hour after hour, day after 
day, week after week, month after month, year after 
year, the musician, the artist, the lecturer, the lawyer, 
the physician, acquire the skill which brings success and 
delight. 

The Sunday-school teacher should, during this pre- 
paratory process, submit himself to the criticism of the 
most skilful workers. He should not only see them at 
work, but they should see him at work. As he discovers 
in their methods excellences to be imitated, they discover 
in him and to him reveal the defects which he must 
correct. 

He must, in this work of practice, enjoy the inspira- 
tion of those who aim at the same results, that the ad- 
vantage of class spirit and laudable rivalry may be 
utilized. 

The Sunday-school teacher must practice under as 
favorable circumstances as possible, enjoying the bene- 
fits of helpful appliances, maps, diagrams, blackboards, 
books, illustrative apparatus, and he should have ample 
time. 

The candidate for the teacher's office should have pre- 
scribed for him a course of study embodying the results 
of wise experience, defining the limits to a required ex- 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 97 

ertion, and thus giving the incentive of hope and the 
satisfaction of a completed work. 

There are many forms in which normal work may 
be prosecuted. 

Our colleges, theological seminaries, and schools of 
higher grades should, through their faculties, provide for 
lectures and lessons which, in connection with the regu- 
lar curriculum of the institution, may fit the young 
men and women who are so disposed to prepare them- 
selves for Sunday-school teaching in after-life. 

formal classes may be organized in connection with 
a particular church, or a number of churches, in a com- 
munity. 

The older scholars of a given Sabbath school who in- 
dicate tact and adaptation may be selected and organized 
into a normal class, to receive instruction in Bible 
knowledge and educational principles, under the direc- 
tion of the Sabbath school itself. The author organized 
and conducted such a normal class in the churches of 
which he was pastor in 1857-58 and in 1859-61. In 
these classes he used as text-books Inglis on "The Sab- 
bath School/' and Conybeare and Howson's "Life and 
Epistles of St. Paul." Each session (held weekly) em- 
braced a lesson in the two subjects. His pupils were 
advanced pupils between the ages of sixteen and twenty- 
five. The work was thorough. 

The normal class may be organized in connection 
with the teachers' meeting, and normal principles ap- 
plied in the actual study of particular lessons. A sup- 
plemental session of thirty minutes would, in the course 
of a year, enable an ordinary teachers' meeting to carry 
out a very satisfactory course of normal study. 
7 



98 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Special ]STormal Institutes may be held, lasting for 
two or three days, and the time improved by regular 
normal exercises. 

The Sunday-school Assembly method, which turns to 
a good account the desire for summer recreation, may 
also prove, as at Chautauqua, a means of improvement. 

The Primary Class subdivisions, under subordinate 
teachers, may prove of immense value in the training of 
teachers for the future, especially where the superinten- 
dent of this primary department is competent to instruct 
the normal pupils as well as the little people. 

The distribution of normal pupils in a school among 
the best classes, for three or four weeks at a time, that 
they may observe the best teachers in their work, is also 
a practicable and feasible plan. 

Where a normal class is impracticable, the devout, 
determined, and diligent Sunday-school teacher may 
still do something toward normal self-improvement. 
He may come, by thought and deep desire, to appreciate 
the most imperative needs of his pupils, their peculiar 
perils, the best possibilities in their lives, the divine pro- 
visions for them, and the divine methods for turning 
these possibilities into possessions and attainments. 
This knowledge must be in him a living force, and must 
produce results. He may (1) read and think much in 
the realm of truth in which he is to teach; (2) be per- 
sonally interested in its experiences and development; 
(3) acquire the habit of self -testing on every theme on 
which he is to teach ; (4) acquire the habit of personal, 
independent, concentrated, continuous thinking on every 
such theme; (5) accustom himself to an after-reading, 
for information, of the text-book he has to teach, and 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 99 

of whatever other book may be useful in this direction ; 
(6) identify himself with his pupils in all affection and 
interest and thought ; (7) constantly and carefully study 
human nature as illustrated in his pupils; (8) carefully 
study their peculiar circumstances and necessities; (9) 
carefully study the laws of teaching as laid down by 
wise teachers, and the phenomena and laws of mental 
and moral life as presented by the psychologists; (10) 
frequently — very frequently — imagine his pupils before 
him, and imagine the processes by which he would win 
and retain and reward their attention; (11) write out 
these processes, developing the subject as it would be 
likely to develop under the interested conversation and 
questioning of his class; (12) practice on others during 
the week, on children at home, in conversation with 
adults, in "parlor classes/' at table, etc.; (13) observe 
successful teachers in public schools, ministers gifted in 
making truth clear and attractive, whether in the pulpit, 
the Sunday school, or in the special children's class; 
(14) enlarge the horizon of knowledge, secular and 
Biblical, thus coming into sympathy with pupils. He 
will find as most helpful in this direction the course of 
reading in the C. L. S. C. (the "Chautauqua Literary 
and Scientific Circle"). And two things he must al- 
ways remember: (1) The true teaching power is not in 
comprehensive and classified knowledge, but in charac- 
ter vitalized and controlled by knowledge of truth. (2) 
The true teaching result is not in so many new ideas 
apprehended and retained by the pupils' intellectual 
nature, but in the self-activity of the pupils' whole 
nature (physical, intellectual, moral, spiritual), induced 
by the truth they do receive. 



100 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

What are the exercises of a normal class ? Personal 
ingenuity, by expert and enterprising teachers, will pro- 
vide a variety of plans for promoting the teacher's 
knowledge and the teacher's skill. Among them we 
may propose the following : 

Recitation from a text-book or catechism on Bible 
history, geography, Sunday-school teaching, etc. This 
recitation and conversation may develop the teaching 
power of the pupils. 

A specimen juvenile lesson, in which the teacher of 
the normal class instructs a class of children. When 
these are dismissed the teacher examines the normal 
class upon his method, to see what they observed and 
thought concerning it and the principles he endeavored 
to illustrate. 

A practice lesson, in w T hich one of the pupils teaches 
a juvenile class, and is afterward subjected to the criti- 
cism of the other pupils and of the normal class teacher. 

Where the class is large it may be resolved into three, 
five, or more sub-classes, each under a teacher selected 
beforehand. At a given signal all the classes may com- 
mence the study of the same lesson. The time assigned 
to this exercise having expired, each teacher may report 
briefly the subject-matter and method of his teaching. 
After all have made their reports, let the leader elicit 
written and anonymous criticisms from the whole class, 
carefully suppressing everything which would indicate, 
or improperly reflect upon, the teacher criticised. After 
such criticism, the conductor should allow the teachers 
another opportunity to speak, and should himself call 
attention to the principal practical lessons to be drawn 
from the excellences and defects of the whole exercise. 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 101 

A lecture, followed by conversations on principles of 
teaching, Sunday-school order, lesson preparation, illus- 
tration, questioning, etc. 

A preparation exercise, in which a given lesson is 
taken up, and the whole class engaged in acquiring the 
knowledge of its contents and in preparing to teach it to 
others, to classes of different grades. The class, in 
carrying out this plan, may select the golden text ; ascer- 
tain the central thought; frame questions; select illus- 
trations ; make topical analyses ; make a pictorial repre- 
sentation or word-picture of the lesson. 

Practice in reading a Scripture lesson may occupy a 
short time occasionally in the exercise of a normal class. 
There is a great deal in the way of reading, by the class 
and by the teacher. 

Practice in committing to memory. There are laws 
of memorizing. These should be known by the teacher, 
and practiced until it becomes an easy thing to commit 
passages of Scripture, outlines of truth, quotations from 
general literature, etc. 

All the exercises of the teacher's work may be taken 
up one at a time and practiced. Among these are the 
following: Preparing outlines, framing questions, find- 
ing and applying illustrations, lines of approach, dis- 
covery of root-thoughts, plans for developing the self- 
activity of the pupils, removing difficulties which may 
occur in a lesson, word-picturing, etc. For definitions 
which form a basis for this work, see Appendix 0. 

There is one exercise which rises above the level of 
the ordinary normal class exercise, and in which is to be 
found the principal power of the Sunday-school teacher 
as of the minister; it is that pleading for personal 



102 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

power, the gift of the Holy Spirit which God has prom- 
ised, without which the teacher, however learned he 
may be, and however intellectually gifted, will be a 
weakling in his work. Let me urge Sunday-school 
teachers and normal class workers to come together 
often, with pleading for the outpouring of the Spirit 
of God. 

To facilitate the individual effort of the normal class 
pupil at home, and of the teacher who, having no normal 
class facilities, desires to improve, I have occasionally 
suggested what I call Normal Praxes, which are an aid 
to the teacher who desires to put himself in the teacher's 
place, to cultivate the teacher's imagination by imagin- 
ing before him, in thought, a class of pupils. He will 
be a better teacher for all these attempts. He will learn 
better how to begin his lesson when the actual class is 
before him, how to adapt it, how rescue wandering eyes, 
how utilize busy fingers, how meet hard questions, how 
ward off an attempt to divert it from its aim, how frame 
a question that will captivate unwilling ears, how turn 
over a leaf of home-life, and put there a fragrant flower 
of divine truth to stay and perfume the pages and the 
place, how send an arrow into a hard heart. The fol- 
lowing are specimens of such Praxes : 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 1. 

Proposition I. — One may know a subject but not be able to teach 
it effectively to a class of pupils. 

Why? 

Proposition II. — It is necessary, in order to teach effectively, 
to examine the lesson with one's pupil in mind. 

Why? 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 103 

Proposition III. — When one has a class of two or more pupils, 
it is not sufficient to study the lesson with only one pupil in mind. 
Why? 

Proposition IV. — It is necessary to know at least two things 
concerning each pupil in order to adapt the lesson to him. 

What two things ? 

What additional knowledge concerning a pupil is desir- 
able in order to most effective teaching? 

Proposition V. — Personal acquaintance with pupils requires cer- 
tain wise efforts on the part of the teacher. 

How may a teacher become acquainted with his pupils 
in a way which shall prove helpful to him as their 
teacher ? 

What mistakes may be made in cultivating acquaintance 
with his pupils ? 

Proposition VI. — There are certain general facts of human na- 
ture which every teacher should know in attempting to instruct, 
especially young persons, in the truths of religion. 

Name a few of these general facts 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 2. 

Proposition I. — A skillful approach to a class with a lesson is of 
the utmost importance in teaching. 

What do you understand by "approach?" 



Why is "approach" so important?. 



Proposition II. — The "approach" to a pupil should awaken his 
interest, excite his curiosity, and make him resolve to know some- 
thing more about the lesson in hand. 

Why is curiosity an important element in teaching?. . . . 

What are some of the good results of securing the "re- 
solve" above mentioned? 



104 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Proposition III. — The method of "approach" to a pupil must 
be determined by his age, capacity, and circumstances. 

1. Imagine a class of infant pupils (less than six years 
of age). You are to teach the lesson — Matt. viii. 1-4. 

With what words would you begin your teaching? 

2. Imagine a class of girls twelve years old. How 
would you begin the same lesson? 

3. Imagine a class of full-grown men and women. How 
would you begin the same lesson? 

4. What one great lesson would you seek to impress 
upon each class above described ? 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 3. 

Suppose I have a class in Sunday school. How many members 

should there be in it ? 

Why not more ? 

Why not a smaller number? 

Which do I prefer, boys or girls ? 

Why? 

Which do I prefer, old or young? 

Why? 

I imagine myself seated with my class in school. The very first 
signal is given by the superintendent calling for order. What two 

things should I, as teacher, do at that moment? 1 

'. 2 

There are certain blunders at this point that superintendent, 
teachers, and scholars are in danger of committing. What are 

they? 

Superintendent 

Teacher 

Scholars 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 4. 

My class and I are now (I imagine) engaged in the "devotional 
services" of the Sunday school. What do I mean by "devotional 
services" in Sunday school? Why have them at all in Sunday 
school? What exercises should "devotional services in Sunday 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 105 

school" include? But do I experience several difficulties in my 
class during these services? What difficulties? I find that the 
principal difficulty with the scholar lies beyond the Sunday school, 
the teacher, and the superintendent. Where? What is it? How 
may I reach that earlier difficulty? 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 5. 

What am I in Sunday-school work for? What aim have I? 

Several aims may influence me : 1 2 

3 What should be the aim? What if I lack clear 

and deep conviction and strong feeling? Why am I needed in 
this work? Who needs me? What arguments are there in favor 
of my continuance in Sunday-school work? 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 6. 

The school has been opened — that is, the "devotional services" 
are over. Before beginning the study of the lesson in the class, 
several things are to be done in the school and in each class. What 
are they? How much time do they usually take? What may he 
omitted? [Think of the several things usually done in a school 
before the class work begins.] What hindrances to the successful 
teaching of a lesson usually arise in Sunday school from outside of 
the class? 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 7. 

I am to teach. What is it to teach? [I know what it is to eat, 
to walk, to plow, to recite a passage committed to memory — but] 
what is it to teach? What do I mean when I say, "I teach a 
lesson?" What do I mean when I say, "I teach my class?" What 
several acts does it imply in the teacher? in the pupil? What 
hindrances to successful teaching usually arise in the Sunday school 
from the teacher? from the class? 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 8. 

In selecting teachers for a Sunday school, what qualities of 
character, intellectual and moral, should be considered desirable? 
What qualities essential? Why does a Sunday-school teacher need 
general preparation for his work? This preparation should, when- 
ever practicable, include : 1. 2 

3 4 Which is better, wide 

knowledge and little earnestness, or limited knowledge and intense 
earnestness? 



106 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 9. 

I am to teach a lesson next Sabbath. It is now (let us suppose) 
Monday morning. I am very busy with home or shop or office duties. 
I have little time to give to study. Some things by way of prepa- 
ration for this lesson must be done. What are they? 

1 2 3. 

4 5 , etc., etc. 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 10. 

I am to teach, but while I am doing my part of the work what 
shall my scholars be doing? Merely listening? What should they 
do? 1 2. 3 

What are the three principal difficulties in attempting to teach 
average scholars? Is "scolding" of use in the teaching process? 
Answer Why ? 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 11. 

There is something in the way a teacher begins sl lesson. The 
first words have a great deal of power. Why? Imagine a class of 
boys, twelve years old, before me. The lesson is — take next Sun- 
day's lesson. Now imagine that it is time for me to begin teach- 
ing. What are the first words (the first twenty-five or forty 

words) I should use in approaching them? " ," 

etc. State another plan of beginning a lesson. State two forms of 
beginning to which objection might fairly be made. 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 12. 

A lawyer was trying to show the Supreme Court of the United 
States that certain lands near the line of a railroad were the prop- 
erty of the railroad, and not of a certain township that claimed 
them. He used a blackboard and a crayon in his address to these 
learned judges. I saw a map on the blackboard. Why did the 
lawyer use crayon and blackboard? A gentleman was explaining 
to a child about the soul being a living reality inside of the body, 
but independent of the body. He used his watch to illustrate the 
point. Can you imagine how he used his watch for this purpose? 
Why did he use any visible illustration at all? What examples of 
this did Jesus give in His teaching? What may the Sunday-school 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 107 

teacher learn on this subject from the lawyer and gentleman above 
referred to, and from Christ as a Teacher? 

NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 13. 

How much of the work in a class recitation should be done by 
the scholar? What mistake in this line do teachers often make? 
What can be done to secure from scholars personal participation in 
the class work? Imagine a class of boys twelve years old; next 
Sunday's lesson ; work to be gotten out of them somehow — what is 
the first thing to be done by the teacher? What is the second 
thing? Name a third. What ten questions would you put to the 
class just described in teaching the lesson of next Sunday? 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 14. 

Does the Sunday-school teacher's work in behalf of his scholars 
cease when Sunday school is over? Why? To what portions of 
the week does it extend? To what places? What four things 
should a Sunday-school teacher do for his scholars during the week? 

1 2 3 4 

What helps does the Sunday-school teacher need, in persons, books, 
and influence, that he may have encouragement, confidence, and suc- 
cess in his work? 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 15. 

Short Studies in Bible Chronology, History, Biography, and 
Geography. 

Arrange in chronological order what you regard as the twenty 
most important events of Bible history. 



1 11. 

2 12. 

3 13. 

4 , 14. 

5 15. 

6 16. 

7 17. 

8 18. 

9 19. 

10 20. 



108 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 16. 
Name a leading trait of character belonging to each of the fol- 
lowing persons : 

1. Noah 

2. Abraham 

3. Joshua 

4. Gideon 

5. Saul 

6. Elijah 

7. Manasseh 

8. Daniel 

9. Nehemiah 

10. John the Baptist . . . 

11. Peter 

12. Stephen 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 17. 

State the Bible land in which each of the following rivers is 
found, and an event connected with it : 



1. Tigris 

2. Euphrates. 

3. Jordan 

4. Jabbok 

5. Kishon 

6. Nile 

7. Abana 



Lands. 



Events. 



NORMAL PRAXIS. No. 18. 
Locate sixteen principal mountains of Bible history, and name a 
person associated with each : 



1. Ararat 


Location. 


Pekson. 


2. Moriah 






3. Horeb 






4. Sinai 






5. Hor 






6. Nebo 






7. Gerizim 






8. Ebal 






9. Tabor 






10. Gilboa 






11. Zion.... 






12. Carmel 






1 3. Quarantania .... 






14. Lebanon 






15. Hermon 






16. Olivet 







THE NORMAL CLASS. 



109 



I come next to consider the general course of Sunday- 
school normal study. It should embrace the following 
subjects : 



1. Pertaining to the Bible : 

1. Its names. 

2. Its books. 

3. The classification of books. 

4. The writers. 

5. The languages. 

6. The gradual development. 

7. The canon. 

8. The identity of its books. 

9. Their historic accuracy. 

10. Their divine authority. 

11. The inspiration. 

12. The principal versions. 

13. The contents of the Bible : 

History, 

Chronology, 

Geography, 

Biography, 

Manners and Customs, 

Divisions of time, 



Natural history, 

Institutions, 

Prophecies, 

Doctrines, 

Weights, 

Measures, etc. 



14. Its interpretation. 

15. Its mission, use, and power. 

16. The Sunday-school teacher should study Christ as the one 
central, vivifying, and all-dominant theme and character of the 
whole Bible. He is the Alpha and Omega, the Genesis and Reve- 
lation, of the book. All things in it point to Him. All things in 
it are because of Him. He is the key to all, and He is the end of 
all. He is also teacher and example. The Sunday-school teacher 
should live as He lived, and teach as He taught. He is the soul of 
the book. Without Him it is a dead book. The study of the person, 
character, and offices of Jesus Christ is, therefore, the radical and 
essential theme of the Sunday-school teacher. 

2. Pertaining to the Sabbath School : 

1. The place and purpose. 

2. The relations to home and church. 

3. The organization. 

4. The management. 



110 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



5. The classification. 

6. The early lesson systems. 

7. The International Lessons. 

8. The Supplemental Lessons. 

9. The appliances. 

10. The Sabbath-school superintendent. 

11. The other Sabbath-school officers. 

12. The Sabbath-school teacher. 

13. The teacher's helps. 

14. The teacher's difficulties and mistakes. 

15. The Sabbath-school normal work: 

Teachers' meeting, Institute, 

16. The week-day poiver of the school. 



Normal class. 



Pertaining to Teaching : 

1. The soul we teach. 

2. The acquisition of knowledge. 

3. The retention of knowledge. 

4. The application of knowledge. 

5. The communication of knowledge. 

6. The preparation of lesson matter. 

7. The preparation to teach the lesson. 

8. The pupil's home preparation. 

9. The teaching process: 

Approach, 

Attention, 

Analysis, 

Questioning, 

Illustration, 

10. The adaptation to classes : 
Primary, 
Intermediate, 
Senior, 



Analogies, 
Reviewing, 
Memory training, 
Self-activity, 
Self-application. 



Adult, 

Careless pupils, 
Insubordinate, etc. 



11. Normal Praxes: 

Acquisition of facts : specific lessons studied — Biblical 
and normal — analysis, analogies, root-thoughts, central 
thought ; relation of Golden Text. 

Study of theories : educational and Sunday-school. 

Practice in teaching : approach, word-picturing, illustra- 
tion, questioning. 

Memorizing Scripture. 



THE NORMAL CLASS. Ill 

The above series of topics have been, from time to 
time, arranged in a variety of forms by union and de- 
nominational Sunday-school departments. One of the 
most widely used is that of the Chautauqua Assembly 
Normal Department, adjusted in 1876 by a committee 
of eleven gentlemen, representing nine different denomi- 
nations. At the Centenary meetings of Sunday-school 
workers in London, in 1880, an International Normal 
Committee was appointed,* which has provided a 
general course of Sunday-school Normal Study. f 

Many questions concerning normal work have come 
to my table, through years of editorial service, from 
people who were eager to experiment, and from some 
who have experimented, in this normal work : 

1. "Is the normal class a substitute for, or an addi- 
tion to, the ordinary Bible class ?" Answer. The "Bible 
class" is for the study of specific lessons. The "normal 
class" is for the training of teachers. The former 
devotes itself especially to the contents of the lesson, 
while the other, although it may study the contents of 
the lesson, does it with a view to the improvement of the 
members of the class as teachers in the future. 

2. "Is it intended for training young people for pros- 



* Names of the International Normal Committee : 

For England: Fountain J. Hartley, Wm. H. Groser, Rev. C. H. 

Kelly, Prof. J. G. Fitch, Alfred Sindall. 
For the United States: Rev. Richard Newton, D.D., 1 Miss Jennie 

B. Merrill, M. C. Hazard, B. F. Jacobs, Rev. Edwin W. Rice, 

Rev. J. H. Vincent. 
For Canada: Hon. Vice-Chancellor Blake, James Hughes, 
f See Appendix D. 

1 Dr. Newton having resigned, the Rev. A. E. Dunning, of Boston, 
was elected in 1886 to take his place. 



112 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

pective teachers, or the improvement of actual teach- 
ers ?" Answer. For both : that the teachers who are 
now in the work may avail themselves of present oppor- 
tunities, which in other years they could not enjoy, and, 
at the same time, that the young people, who are to be 
the teachers from three to ten years hence, may be better 
prepared for the work when it is required of them. 

3. "Is there not difficulty in the ordinary Sunday 
school in obtaining competent instructors for the normal 
class ?" Answer. This is, perhaps, the most serious 
difficulty in connection with the organization and con- 
duct of normal classes; but if the sessions be held at 
some other hour than that occupied by the school, a 
selection from the pastor, superintendent, and teachers 
of the regular school may be made, and if any given 
school does not have the requisite talent within itself, 
there are men and women in every community who 
would be glad to render the service if called upon. 
Denominational relations should have no consideration 
in this matter. Secular teachers, who have been thor- 
oughly prepared for the work of secular instruction, and 
who are interested in the work of the church, might 
be induced to give their experience and training for the 
benefit of such classes. It is our firm conviction that 
where a normal class is really needed God will provide 
some teacher to conduct it. 

4. "How large proportion of the time should be 
given in the normal class to the systematic study of 
the Bible, and how much to methods of teaching ?" 
Answer. The great object of the normal class is to dis- 
cuss and illustrate principles and methods of teaching ; 
but this may be most effectively done, in most cases, by 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 113 

the illustration of the same in the actual process of 
teaching. Therefore a course of study covering the 
general themes of the Bible could be laid down, and 
especial attention should be given in the study of these 
themes to the true method of teaching them. 

5. "May it not be well to have two instructors for 
these two lines of study — Bible Truth and Teaching 
Methods?" Answer. Where two can be employed it 
would certainly be advisable; but there should be no 
clashing of authority. Each should have his place and 
work assigned. 

6. "Would not the pastor of the church have, in the 
first part, a rare chance of interesting his people in sys- 
tematic Bible knowledge ?" Answer. Most certainly. 
And if he be a true teacher the conduct of the second 
part of the exercise would increase his power. Many 
young ministers who possess teaching tact, but need to 
develop it, would gain more themselves by the organiza- 
tion of a normal class than even the pupils whom they 
sought to instruct. 

7. "How many pastors of the church are willing thus 
to attend to actually teaching a general summary of the 
Bible ?" Answer. If there were more interest shown 
by the people in the attempts which many pastors make 
to render service of this kind, it is probable that there 
would be greater interest felt by them in the special 
normal class work. 

8. "In the study of methods of teaching, should not 
the instructors be usually practical teachers from the 
secular schools, and the most successful teachers of the 
Sunday school?" Answer. Principles and methods of 
teaching are very much the same in the secular and the 



114 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

sacred departments of culture, and where a secular 
teacher has the right aim and spirit, he certainly would 
greatly excel the average Sunday-school teacher. Let 
us always get the best workers w T e can for every 
service. 

9. "If such secular and Sunday-school teachers are 
unwilling to take complete charge of the normal school 
methods, might not several, of different kinds and grades, 
of classes, divide the work between them?" Answer. 
The question is itself an admirable suggestion. 

10. "Is there any danger of making machine 
teachers ?" Answer. 'No more than of making machine 
lawyers by schools of law, or machine physicians by 
schools of medicine, or machine preachers by theological 
seminaries. If a man be a machine, institutions will 
not improve him very much ; and if he be a born teacher, 
culture will not interfere with his tact and fervor. It 
will, on the other hand, increase his power. 

11. "Is there any danger of losing the spiritual 
element from teaching by normal class instruction?" 
Answer. The best-educated teachers are just as likely 
to be spiritually minded as the ignorant. We are to 
grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. Spiritual life is promoted and established by 
the diligent and devout study of truth. 

12. "How long, how often, and at what time should 
the normal class hold its sessions ?" Answer. A normal 
class made up of pupils in connection with the regular 
school should hold its session every Sunday. Special 
normal classes, holding a series of meetings — ten or fif- 
teen — should meet at such times as will suit the largest 
number. These times should be advertised, and dis- 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 115 

tinctly understood. Then everybody should try to be 
present. 

13. "How much study is expected, and how much can 
be obtained, from the members between the sessions ?" 
Answer. The more the better. The better the teaching 
at the sessions, the more the members will be inclined to 
prepare for the exercises of the class. Good teachers 
will require, and by some process secure, previous prep- 
aration. 

14. "Should not the sessions of the normal class be 
conversational V 7 Answer. The conversational method, 
conducted by wise leaders, is the very highest style of 
teaching, which is, after all, but quickening individual 
minds to self -activity in a particular line. 

15. "How, then, are discussions to be held to the 
important points, and how much authority should be 
given in advance to the leader ?" Answer. The leader 
should have authority and wisdom enough to control the 
conversation in the interest of the theme under dis- 
cussion. 

16. "Is it not true that few teachers are provided 
even with a good Bible dictionary and maps ?" Answer. 
Helps are now so cheap and available that an intelligent, 
enterprising teacher will find the helps. It would be a 
good plan to provide a teachers' library, and keep it in 
some shop or store in the town or village, to which at 
any hour of the day teachers might have access. 

17. "Is the uniform course of normal class study 
intended to be held to rigidly, or is each class to branch 
out from this ?" Answer. The nearer a class adheres 
to the prescribed course until it is completed, the better 
for the class. 



116 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

18. "Is it possible to have model classes taught in the 
presence of the normal class, or is the spiritual element 
likely to be left out in the presence of spectators?" 
Answer. It is not necessary to leave out the spiritual 
element under these circumstances. Teachers who are 
profoundly in earnest will very soon forget everything 
mechanical in the process of teaching, and both pupils, 
teacher, and normal class students will become intensely 
interested in the work and its method, not losing any 
degree of spiritual force or of spiritual results. 

19. "Is it not almost impossible to induce the very 
teachers who most need normal class study to under- 
take it ?" Answer. This is a radical difficulty which can 
be met only by personal effort, by rendering the exer- 
cises of the normal class attractive, by not undertaking 
too many meetings, nor too much at each meeting, and 
gradually the apathetic and incompetent teachers, if 
they have any qualification whatever for their work, 
will be won to the class, or, seeing that the standard is 
so high, they will resign. 

20. "Is the tendency of the normal class work to 
make self-satisfied teachers V Answer. The more cul- 
ture and grace, the more humility. 

21. "What has been the general effect of normal 
classes on the Sunday schools in which they have been 
held ?" Answer. From many pastors and superintend- 
ents I have received the most enthusiastic letters, in- 
dorsing the normal class movement, and declaring that 
the power of their schools has been greatly enhanced 
by it. 

22. "How shall we overcome difficulties in arranging 
for organizing and conducting normal classes ? In our 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 117 

small communities the teachers are few, the enthusiasm 
is lacking, and the discouragements are great." 

(1.) There must be at least one individual in that 
community who has a true idea of the work of the 
Sunday school. He or she must see that the school is a 
training institution — a school, and not a prayer-meet- 
ing; a school, and not a Sunday concert or sociable; 
a school, and not a library association. He must recog- 
nize the importance of thorough preparation on the 
part of teachers. 

(2.) This one must find another, and still another, of 
like convictions with himself. He must find them, or he 
must raise them up by conversation, argument, or dis- 
tribution of tracts and articles on the subject. He must 
compel others to feel with himself the necessity of a 
higher standard of Sunday-school work. 

(3.) This little coterie of convinced workers must 
organize with a view of increasing the number of those 
who feel the necessity and who are willing to adopt some 
measures for improvement. This may be done by talk- 
ing to the superintendent or pastor, or both ; by holding 
at some private house a meeting for a cup of tea and an 
hour of talk. 

(4.) The new movement must not involve too much 
work or too much time. Instead of inaugurating a 
meeting which shall be continued for all time, let 
those who are interested agree to organize for ten or 
twelve special meetings. A limited number of meet- 
ings will be attended by persons who could not pledge 
themselves to be regular attendants for a long series 
of services. 

(5.) Public notices should be given of this meeting 



118 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

from the pulpit, from the superintendent's desk, and in 
the prayer-meeting, that the whole church may under- 
stand what is contemplated. 

(6.) In addition to the public notices there should be 
a call sent to each of the Sunday-school teachers, and to a 
few in the advanced classes who may be thought willing 
to devote themselves to such work. This personal call 
should be made in writing or by a printed circular, and 
either sent through the post-office or handed by one of 
the interested individuals, who can add oral appeal to 
the printed announcement. 

(7.) The plan of work for the ten meetings should be 
outlined; the subjects to be studied, the conversations 
to be conducted, etc. This outline will commend itself 
to those who are anxious to learn. 

(8.) The place of meeting should be well understood, 
so that there may be no uncertainty in the mind of any 
one as to where he shall go. It should be the aim of the 
managers to have the place comfortable, well warmed, 
well lighted, and all this in ample time. 

(9.) The exercises should be opened punctually, made 
as interesting and instructive as possible, and brought 
to a close before the persons present are wearied. 

(10.) The best man or woman in the community 
should be selected to conduct these exercises. Ample 
preparation should be made ; members of the class should 
be encouraged to use blank paper and lead pencils freely, 
to ask questions, and to offer suggestions. 

(11.) It should be the aim of every meeting to com- 
municate Bible knowledge, to illustrate some important 
lesson from the Bible, to illustrate from the members of 
the class some conscious need in connection with their 



THE NORMAL CLASS. 119 

work as teachers, and to meet this need, or put them in 
the way of meeting it for themselves. 

(12.) There should be no discouragement felt if but 
a few are present, and not a single allusion should be 
made to the fact by those who conduct it, that there is 
"but a small turn-out." Nothing so weakens a meeting 
as to begin lamenting over the absent ones. Numbers 
do not make a success in normal class work. Two per- 
sons may constitute and conduct a good normal class 
— three will do it better. 

(13.) The difficulty of coming together in rural 
neighborhoods for the normal class is no greater than 
that of getting together for sewing societies, spelling 
matches, evening parties, or revival meetings. I have 
never known the weather to interfere with a revival 
meeting after it had once gotten a start. When people 
are interested they do not allow weather to keep them 
away from a desirable engagement. "Where there is a 
will there is a way." 

This work of normal training is pre-eminently the 
work of the pastor. The officers and teachers of the 
school are his representatives. Their ideals and aims 
are not likely to be loftier or nobler than his own. The 
normal class is his opportunity for gaining a personal 
hold upon them, for inspiring and strengthening them, 
and for securing their intelligent, earnest, and unre- 
mitting co-operation in the building up of the whole 
church. The skill he thus acquires in the art of putting 
truth will yield its best fruit in his own pulpit, prayer- 
meeting, and platform work. The better teacher he is, 
the better preacher he will become. 



120 THE MODEKN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



CHAPTEK VIII. 

THE INSTITUTE. 

The Sunday-school institute is an abridged normal 
class. It may hold a short session of one, two, or more 
days. Its lectures, illustrative exercises, conversations, 
discussions, and class drills will give an impulse to all 
forms of Sunday-school work. The institute has many 
advantages over the ordinary convention. In America 
it has increased the interest of ministers in the training 
work, and has been the means of creating and develop- 
ing normal classes. Teachers who may not be willing 
to commit themselves to a full course of normal study 
may be easily persuaded to attend the six, eight, or ten 
sessions of an institute. 

The success of such local meetings will depend upon 
the variety of exercises announced upon the programme, 
the efficiency with which they are carried out, and 
especially upon the tact and force of the conductor. 

I shall present in the following pages some of the 
institute exercises, which in the United States, several 
years ago, proved of great service. It is not to be 
expected that their practical value will be estimated 
alike by all who read these suggestions. In the hands of 
one worker a plan may be exceedingly useful, which 
other men would never adopt. I therefore place before 
my readers a large variety of methods. Should these 
suggest other and original plans not here indicated, and 



THE INSTITUTE. 121 

more effective than any of these, the object of the author 
will have been attained. 

1. Opening Services. — The religious devotions of 
the institute should receive careful attention, especially 
the initiatory devotions, when the key-note is to be 
struck — the plane of thought and sentiment for the 
session to be determined. No careless appointment 
should here be made. The dull routine of a "prayer- 
meeting hour" is to be avoided. A topic being an- 
nounced beforehand on the programme, all the Scripture 
readings, remarks, songs, and prayers of the service 
should have reference to it. The following topics have 
been thus used with admirable results : "The Spirit of 
God now present ;" "Our Homes ;" "The Preachers of 
the Word;" "The Unconverted Scholars;" "Senior 
Scholars," etc., etc. The reading of several Scripture 
selections, alternating with prayer and singing, will 
tend to instruct as well as to guide the teachers in their 
devotions. 

2. The Entire Work. — It will be desirable at times, 
where the institute is a short one, to present in very con- 
densed form the whole range of practical Sunday-school 
work in a single session. I knew this to be done at an 
institute in Ohio, many years ago, when addresses, each 
occupying seven minutes, on the following topics, were 
delivered. Of course everything was very much con- 
densed. Each speaker occupied all his time, but his 
limitation compelled careful elimination and abridg- 
ment. He said only his best things, and said them in 
the shortest and plainest way possible. 

The Entire Work. [Seven-minute Addresses.] 
(1.) Words from Parents to the Sunday School. 



122 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



(2 



) Words from the Sunday School to Parents. 



(3.) Words from the Pulpit to the Sunday School. 

(4.) Words from the Sunday School to the Pulpit. 

(5.) The Order of Exercises in Sunday School. 

(6.) Bible Study in Sunday School. 

(7.) The Infant Scholars in Sunday School. 

(8.) Senior Scholars in Sunday School. 

(9.) The Teachers' Meeting. 

(10.) The Sunday School Power during the Week. 

3. Institute Conversations. — Long speeches are 
the bane of conventions. In Sunday-school institutes 
they should always be discouraged. If instead of speech- 
making we could occasionally have conversations, our 
work would be much more profitable. Once remove 
embarrassment and secure a lively interest in the sub- 
ject, and there will be no difficulty in keeping up such 
conversation. Let the following serve as good examples 
of what we mean : 

No. 1. Teachers' Meeting.— Mr. A. A "live" 
Sunday school must have a teachers' meeting. 

Mr. B. But it is so difficult to get all the teachers to 
attend. 

Mr. C. If only two come they may spend an hour 
profitably. 

Mr. A. But we must be careful not to find fault and 
complain because so few are there. 

Mr. C. Should teachers be selected with reference to 
their residence near the place of meeting ? 

Mr. A. Certainly not. The main question is one of 
qualification. 

Mr. D. Indifferent and incompetent teachers resid- 
ing near the place of meeting will be less likely to 



THE INSTITUTE. 123 

attend than the earnest teacher who lives farther 
away. 

Mr. E. Teachers at a distance who, on account of bad 
weather, rough roads, family cares, ill health, etc., are 
unable to attend the teachers' meeting regularly, may 
promise to spend at home in prayerful and careful study 
of the lesson the hour devoted to the meeting. This 
would interest them in the meeting, and guarantee their 
attendance at the earliest opportunity. 

Mr. B. What exercises are appropriate to a teachers- 
meeting ? 

Mr. F. The recitation by every teacher from memory 
of the next Sabbath's lesson. 

Mr. E. The hour should be spent, not on the subject- 
matter of the lesson, but on methods. 

Mr. A. I understand that the teachers' meeting is 
not a Bible class. 

Mr. G. It is rather to test the teacher's familiarity 
with the lesson, and, by illustrating methods of teaching, 
to aid him in his work. 

Mr. B. Why not bring a class of juvenile pupils and 
have them taught by a teacher ? 

Mr. G. Then let the rest criticise the plan of the 
teacher. 

Mr. A. Should this criticism take place before or 
after the class is dismissed ? 

Mr. G. Certainly after. Children should not hear 
criticisms before their teacher. They would be incited 
by such example to look with a critical eye on the 
efforts of those who instruct them. 

No. 2. How to get Attention. — Mr. A. We can 
do nothing with a class unless we have the attention. 



124 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Mr. B. The attention, too, of every pupil. 

Mr. A. All the time. How shall we secure this V 

Miss C. By being awake ourselves. 

Miss E. By being ourselves absorbingly interested in 
the scholars and in the lesson. 

Mr. D. By having something new to tell. 

Mr. F. In an emergency I would rise and stand while 
teaching. 

Mr. A. I should like a blackboard, or at least a slate, 
on which to record some outline or initial letters to 
excite curiosity. 

Miss G. The class should see that the teacher fully 
understands his lesson, and is independent of book and 
lesson-paper. 

Mr. H. His eyes should be free. 

Mr. I. He should use his will silently, and thus 
summon himself and command his class. 

Miss E. The true teacher will address questions and 
remarks to persons most remote, and to those who are 
most inattentive. 

Mr. J. I use pictures a great deal in getting the 
attention of little people. 

Mr. K. They may be used with older classes. 

Miss L. I keep three or four little stories on hand 
to illustrate the lesson, but keep them in reserve for 
use when the interest flags a little. I can sometimes 
go through the lesson without using more than one of 
the stories. 

Mr. J.. If I can succeed in getting my scholars to 
question me I find no difficulty in getting attention. 

4. Sunday-School Miscellany. — An hour may be 
set apart for everybody to say something on any and 



THE INSTITUTE. 125 

all subjects, the time of each speaker being limited to 
one, two, or three minutes. A single sentence, a word 
of advice, a bit of experience, a very short incident, an 
objection, a difficulty, a brief quotation from Scripture 
or poetry — so will the time pass by pleasantly and 
profitably to all. Written suggestions may also be for- 
warded to the conductor's desk to be read during this 
exercise. 

5. The Promise Meeting. — This is a suggestion of 
that successful evangelist, D. L. Moody, of Chicago. I 
saw him conduct such a meeting at the California State 
Sunday-School Convention in 1871. Any one was per- 
mitted to rise and repeat or read one of the "exceeding 
great and precious promises" of Scripture. An exposi- 
tory or experimental sentence was allowed, but no long 
speeches. As passage after passage of the pure Word 
dropped from living lips upon the ears of that vast 
assembly, it seemed as though a "shower of diamonds" 
was falling from the open heavens. Our institutes 
cannot have too much of God's Word in them, nor can 
they err by introducing warm personal religious ex- 
perience to illustrate and enforce that Word. 

6. The Lecture-Lesson combines the peculiarities 
of a regular lecture and a recitation. The lecturer 
follows his outline of thought, but he is at liberty to stop 
at any time and question his audience, subject them to 
a regular examination of the ground he has covered in 
his lecture, while they also are at liberty to arrest him 
by questions at any step of his discourse. What goes 
by the name of Bible-class teaching in many adult 
classes is little more than a lecture-lesson, and perhaps 
too often it is lecture without lesson — discourse without 



126 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

drill — preaching rather than teaching. The advantages 
of the lecture-lesson in an institute are apparent in the 
carefulness of preparation and of statement which it 
secures from the teacher, and the attention which it is 
apt to beget in the audience. 

7. Institute Catechism. — This is a plan designed 
to elicit reports from teachers. The following "Insti- 
tute Catechism" w r as sent beforehand to all teachers who 
had been invited to a certain institute in Michigan : 

"The teachers in attendance are requested and ex- 
pected to answer the following questions, writing the 
answer opposite the question. No names are to be 
furnished or read. The list will be distributed and 
collected promiscuously, and no one will know the 
author of any of the answers made. 

"Candid and careful answers are desired. 

"(1.) How many scholars are there in your class ?. . . 

"(2.) How many of them have you visited at their 
houses within a year ? . . . . 

"(3.) How many hours a week on an average do you 
give to studying the lesson ? . . . . 

"(4.) Have you any Bible maps? How 

many ? 



"(5.) Have you a Bible dictionary?. . ..Whose?. . .. 

"(6.) Do you use a commentary ? . . . . Whose ? . . . . 

"(7.) What other helps do you have or use in pre- 
paring your lessons ? 

"(8.) What books on the subject of Sunday-school 
teaching have you read ? 

"(9.) Do you ever take maps or pictures into your 
class to show to the scholars ? . . . . 

"(10.) Do you keep a blank book and scrap-book 



THE INSTITUTE. 127 

to note down and preserve illustrations for future 
use ? . . . . 

"(11.) Have you ever used a paper or slate and pencil 
as an aid to illustrate lessons in your class ? . . . . 

"(12.) How many from your class have united with 
the church during the last year ? . . . . " 

8. Test Questions or Report Questions. — Instead 
of spending whole hours in hearing dull "reports" from 
ten, twenty, or fifty different schools, let a few pointed 
questions be put by the conductor, and answered 
promptly and briefly by representatives from the several 
schools. For example, How many schools are here 
represented ? Pastors rise. If the pastor be absent let 
the superintendent rise. If neither pastor nor super- 
intendent be here, will a teacher rise to represent his 
school ? Tou now have a representation on the floor 
from every school. These persons are requested to 
answer the questions as they may be announced by 
the conductor. "How long is your Sunday-school 
session ?" Replies come in something like the follow- 
ing from the audience : First Presbyterian : "One hour 
and thirty minutes." Second Baptist : "One hour and 
ten minutes." Third Methodist : "Generally two hours, 
although the time on the programme is one hour and 
fifty minutes." "How much time do you spend in 
actual Bible study?" Answers: "Forty minutes;" 
"Twenty-five minutes ;" "Including general review, 
thirty-five;" "Twenty-seven;" "Twenty," etc. "Do 
you have regular teachers' meetings for the study 
of the lessons V 9 "Do you hold Sunday-school 
concerts ?" 

9. The Question Drawer needs no more than a 



128 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

mention. The whole audience is permitted to ask, in 
writing, any question on any phase of Sunday-school 
work. The person whose answer is desired may be 
indicated on the slip containing the question, otherwise 
the conductor may reply himself or permit any one 
present to do so. 

10. Serial Questions. — On the published pro- 
gramme there may appear several questions, which, 
being circulated before the institute commences, will 
excite some thought. To these questions the pro- 
gramme may request "written replies to be presented at 
the first session/' The following are specimens : 

(1.) What are the duties of the family to the Sunday 
school ? 

(2.) What are the duties of the pastor to the Sunday 
school? 

(3.) What are the duties of Sunday-school officers 
and teachers to the church ? 

(4.) What are the duties of the Sunday-school 
teacher to the family ? 

(5.) How may teachers' meetings be made most 
useful ? 

(6.) What are the principal defects in our Sunday- 
school system ? 

(7.) How shall we retain youth and adults as 
members of the Sunday school ? 

Answers having been reported, the institute may 
appoint "Councils" of two or three persons each to 
examine, arrange, and present in due form the answers 
given to each question. For example, at the meeting 
where the seven questions above were asked, we find 
the following item in the programme : 



THE INSTITUTE. 129 

Appointment of "Councils" on the answers pre- 
sented : 

(1.) On Home Help in Sunday School. 

(2.) The Pastor and the Sunday School. 

(3.) The Sunday School and the Church. 

(4.) The Sunday-School Teacher's Duties to the 
Family. 

(5.) On Teachers' Meetings. 

(6.) On Sunday-School Defects. 

(7.) On retaining Youth and Adults in Sunday 
School. 

11. Institute Lecture. — The right man having 
been engaged for the purpose, give him the best hour 
of the day or evening for a lecture on some important 
and practical subject. Let his lecture be followed by 
either the Question Drawer, or Institute Conversation, 
or both. 

12. Specimen Teaching. — One can do any piece of 
work the better for having first seen the same thing 
done by another. Young teachers of the Bible should 
enjoy frequent opportunities of this kind in their special 
work. We place such observation of actual teaching 
only second in practical value to the young teacher's 
practice under the eye and subject to the keen criticism 
of the accomplished instructor. The very best use of 
"specimen teaching" is that proposed some years ago 
by an efficient Sunday-school superintendent, who, feel- 
ing the need of raising up a better class of young 
teachers, thus proposed to utilize the weekly services of 
his very best teachers : 

"I propose to appoint in my school a corps of assistant 
teachers. These assistant teachers are to be selected 
9 



130 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

from our oldest scholars, and are each to sit and recite 
with some one of the classes for two or three Sundays, 
and then with another class, and so on, until each assist- 
ant shall have had an opportunity of noting the methods 
of management and instruction adopted by a majority 
of the regular teachers. They are always to recite and 
take part in the lesson in the class with which they sit, 
so as not to embarrass the teacher. They are to take 
private notes, and compare for themselves the different 
methods of instruction, culling out the best features in 
each. With the practical information thus obtained, 
revised and strengthened by a further comparison with 
the systems reported in the published works upon the 
subject, these assistants will be prepared to enter upon 
their work with great advantages, and we shall never 
be at a loss to supply a class with an efficient instructor, 
nor to provide a substitute for an absent teacher. 

"These assistants are to pledge themselves never, 
either publicly or privately, to make comparisons be- 
tween the methods of the teachers whom they watch, 
but are to keep wholly and sacredly to themselves the 
result of their observations. They may, at the end of 
their probation, give a synoptical memorandum of the 
different modes noticed, and of the excellences and 
deficiencies observed, provided it is done in such a man- 
ner as not to connect the one or the other with any indi- 
vidual. These precautions seem necessary, in order to 
prevent the possibility of ill-feeling or embarrassment 
among the regular teachers from a criticism of their 
efforts." 

13. Specimen Bible Class. — The local and perma- 
nent Sunday-school institute should provide specimen 



THE INSTITUTE, 131 

lessons. Resolve the whole institute into a class, and 
appoint some one to conduct a lesson. Assign thirty 
or forty minutes to the service, after which permit and 
encourage exhaustive oral or written criticism. 

14. Comparison of Methods. — Occasionally resolve 
the institute into three, five, or more classes, each under 
a teacher selected beforehand, so as to permit a careful 
preparation.* 

15. The Model Class. — If the audience be not too 
large it may be well to place a youths', or intermediate, 
or infant class on the platform, to be taught by some 
competent person. If criticism follow it would be well 
to dismiss the class, that the good impressions of the 
lesson be not dissipated by the objections to the teacher's 
method which a frank criticism might call forth. 
Classes of different grades may be taught the same 
lesson by different persons during a single session. 

16. Illustrative Specimens. — Better than the 
formal specimen recitation is the introduction into a 
regular address of class exercises designed to illustrate 
the speaker's theory. For example, a teacher lectures 
on infant Sunday-school work. He develops a prin- 
ciple, and, turning to the class placed by his side on the 
platform, illustrates it in a brief exercise. Suppose he 
recommends elliptical teaching. He turns at once to 
his little pupils, and, telling them a story, secures their 
assistance in re-telling it according to the elliptical plan. 
So he illustrates questioning, concert replies, physical 
movements, blackboard drills, etc. 

17. Specimen Teachers'' Meetings may be held 
before a small teachers' institute. 



* See page 101. 



132 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

18. A Specimen Normal Class session on such an 
occasion will illustrate a most important part of our 
modern Sunday-school work. 

19. A Specimen Sunday-School Session may be 
conducted by the institute, the teachers constituting 
the classes; or children may be invited, instructed 
beforehand in the order to be observed, and then 
taught by regular teachers. The superintendent, 
publicly examining the school, may dismiss it in due 
form. 

Let me here say to conductors and teachers in all 
"specimen exercises" before an institute, avoid making 
a mere show of the children or of your method. Espe- 
cially avoid all pretending "that this is Sunday," that 
"these men and women are little children." Don't 
teach an imaginary class, and go through the farce of 
personal applications and appeals to "play" children. 
We have seen some of the shallowest and most puerile 
performances in the name of "specimen exercises" be- 
fore institutes. Do not let us, however, mistake the 
abuse for the thing itself, and ignore a service which, 
properly managed, must do incalculable good to young 
superintendents and teachers. Determine just what the 
specimen is to be — a lecture, a lecture-lesson, a theo- 
logical discussion, a simultaneous class drill, a prepara- 
tion class, a teachers' class, or a regular juvenile recita- 
tion. Then in all earnestness and self-forgetfulness 
carry out your plan. I am convinced that, as a general 
thing, specimen illustrations of the character recom- 
mended will not succeed before large and popular audi- 
ences. Let our evenings at great institutes be spent 
in addresses of a general character, and let us give 



THE INSTITUTE. 133 

specimens before those, and those only, who are directly 
interested. 

20. Map Drawing. — All maps being removed from 
the walls, the conductor requests the institute to prepare 
rough drafts of one or more maps, containing the follow- 
ing places, the names of which he writes on the black- 
board : 

First Map, — Mesopotamia, Nineveh, Babylon, Eu- 
phrates, Tigris, Persian Gulf. 

Second Map. — Gulf of Suez, Akabah, Mount Sinai, 
Suez, Mount Hor, Kadesh-Barnea, Cairo. 

Third Map. — Dead Sea, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, 
Nazareth, Sea of Galilee, Jordan. 

Fourth Map. — Ephesus, Smyrna, Troas, Samothra- 
cia, Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, Corinth. 
There is scarcely a limit to the subjects. 

Five or ten minutes should be given the institute to 
prepare. The maps should then be collected, and the 
best and poorest of them reproduced by the conductor 
upon the blackboard. 

21. A Practice-Preparation. — A lesson from 
Scripture having been selected and printed in full on 
the programme, let the institute spend an hour or more 
in — (1) Selecting the Golden Text; (2) in ascertaining 
the central thought; (3) in framing questions; (4) in 
the choice of illustrations; (5) in the topical analysis; 
(6) in pictorial representation or word-picturing of the 
incident. This may seem at first thought a dry and un- 
interesting exercise. It may, indeed, be unpopular with 
a large audience who assemble merely for an evening 
entertainment ; but a small institute made up of earnest 
teachers will find intense interest and permanent profit 



134 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

in such practical training. This very thing is what 
teachers are required to do every week at home. The 
suggestions made by the best workers at an institute in 
this practice-preparation must be invaluable to the 
majority of teachers in attendance. 

22. Class Studies in Bible History. — Suppose an 
hour to be assigned to the following or some other histor- 
ical exercise (the plan to be printed on the programme) : 

(1.) Scripture Selections. — Exod. i. 7-14; iv. 27-31; 
xii. 40-42 ; xiii. 17, 18 ; Numb, xxxiii. 1-48. [Instead 
of the last-named chapter read Psalm cvi.] 

(2.) Questions. — [Answers maybe given in writing.] 

1. Why did the Israelites forsake Egypt ? 

2. Might not the same results have been secured by 

leaving them there ? If not, why not ? 

3. What was the route taken by the Israelites from 

Egypt to Canaan ? 

4. Why did they not take a shorter route to Canaan ? 

5. What divine attributes are especially revealed 

through this part of the Jewish history ? 

6. What human imperfections and sins and virtue 

are exhibited in this history ? 
(3.) Map Exercise on "The Wanderings of Israel." 
(4.) Simultaneous Revieiv. — In this exercise the 
whole institute should join with heartiness. If at first 
the answers are few and feeble, let the conductor 
patiently but firmly insist upon prompt, loud, simul- 
taneous answers. A very little tact will insure gratify- 
ing success. 

23. An Analytical Exercise in the Books of 
Scripture. — At an institute held several years ago one 
hour was given to the analysis of "the Gospel according 



THE INSTITUTE. 



135 



to Matthew.'' The leader gave a brief lecture upon the 
author and his book, calling upon the institute to sub- 
stantiate the several points by Scripture references, 
admitting questions and the expression of dissenting or 
varying opinions all the way through. After this he 
placed the outline on the blackboard, as follows : 



I. Author. 




II. Book. 


r 1. 


Genealogy of Jesus. 


1 Names. 


1. 


Object. 


2. 


Infancy and youth. 


2. Country. 


2. 


Contents. 


3. 


Episode : The Baptist. 


3. City. 


3. 


Size. 


4. 


Introduction to His ministry 


4. Business. 


4. 


Style. 


5. 


In Galilee. 


5. Character. 


5. 


Language. 


6. 


Galilee to Jerusalem. 




6. 


Sources of 
Information. 


- 7. 


In Jerusalem. 



This analysis, with the facts it elicited, was copied by 
each teacher. The lecturer or conductor drilled the in- 
stitute upon it. All answered in concert. Then word 
after word was erased from the board, and from memory 
the whole analysis was repeated by the class. 

24. A Single Subject might occupy the attention 
of a two days' institute, supplying all the variety needed 
to keep up the interest, and concentrating all the ener- 
gies of the workers upon one subject so as to secure thor- 
oughness and completeness. Supopse, for example, 
that an institute spent six sessions on The Wanderings 
of Israel. In this you have— (1) Geographical Exer- 
cises on Egypt, Arabia, and Canaan. (2) Exercises 
on Ancient Manners and Customs. (3) Object les- 
sons, blackboard outlines, etc. (4) Specimen infant, 
juvenile, and adult class exercises may be found in 
abundance in this most interesting department of the 
Bible. (5) What more suggestive and inspiring topics 
for the prayer-meetings and opening exercises than are 



136 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

suggested by the pilgrimage to Canaan % (6) Moses, as 
a model superintendent, would furnish a most fruitful 
theme, opening up the whole question of organization 
and administration, and giving admirable illustrations 
of true trust in God. 

25. Object and Blackboard Lessons should be 
encouraged in the institutes. We must never reject a 
good theory or system because weak people abuse it. 
Let the criticisms upon all such exhibitions, however, in 
an institute be very candid and searching. 

26. The Use of Text-books in a Sunday-school 
institute should be encouraged. A few pages from 
Inglis, Trumbull, or other standard Sunday-school 
authors, may be read, and discussion follow. Or on a 
given subject many authorities may be taken up. At 
an institute for thorough work in two days (by taking 
half an hour at a time) several small tracts on Sunday- 
school teaching may be read and discussed. A normal 
class in the institute may be required to recite lessons 
from such text-books. 

27. Memories of Sacred Places. — The topic for a 
half-hour may be "Sacred Memories of Gethsemane," 
"Sacred Memories of Bethlehem/' "Of the Temple," 
etc. Let each person be expected to furnish some fact. 
Use maps. Kecord the facts stated on the blackboard 
and in chronological order. Eead Scripture references 
in concert. A descriptive passage from a standard 
author relating to the place or its associations may be 
read by a member of the institute. 

28. Temple Studies, or investigations into the archi- 
tecture, furniture, utensils, services, offices, spiritual 
meanings, etc., of the Jewish tabernacle and temple. 



THE INSTITUTE. 137 

29. Pictorial Illustrations may be extensively 
and profitably used in the Sunday-school institute. 
Colored diagrams large enough to be seen in all 
parts of a large lecture-room or church may be pur- 
chased or hired for an evening. The magic lan- 
tern affords a large field for such pictorial aids to 
teaching. These are often employed by lecturers on 
sacred history and archaeology, and I have seen them 
used with fine effect in Sunday-school conventions and 
institutes. 

30. The Biblical Museum. — The diagrams already 
described render it practicable for the Sunday-school 
workers in any community to open for a few days a 
Biblical museum which will contribute to a better 
understanding of the Holy Scriptures. Curiosities 
from the Holy Land may be borrowed for the occasion. 
Addresses may be delivered by persons who have visited 
the far East. In this way teachers, parents, and senior 
scholars will be interested and instructed. An exhibi- 
tion like this in connection with an institute would be 
of much value. 

The North-Western Sunday-School Teachers' Insti- 
tute was organized in Chicago in the winter of 1864 and 
1865. A "winter course" of institute lectures and other 
exercises was carried through. One evening was de- 
voted to the study of Jerusalem. A concert recitation 
on the gates, wall, etc., of the Holy City was conducted 
by the writer. Short addresses by Dr. Vandoren, Tut- 
hill King, Esq., of Chicago, and Rev. Dr. Kerr, of 
Rockford, all of whom had visited Palestine, were 
delivered. A variety of maps, pictures, panoramic 
views, etc., adorned the walls. Three or four tables 



138 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

were filled with curiosities from the Holy Land : articles 
made of olive wood, water from the Jordan, Oriental 
wearing apparel, shells from the Sea of Galilee, flowers, 
specimens of Syrian wheat and barley, lamps, pipes, 
shoes, Damascus "kob-kobs," sand from Lebanon, mosaic 
fragments from Tabor, etc. One table contained a large 
number of Oriental pictures, engravings, photographs, 
and stereographs. A stereoscope of large size contained 
thirty-six beautiful views of Eome, Egypt, Palestine, 
and Jerusalem.* 

At the Anniversary of the Sunday School Union (of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church) held in Columbus, 
Ohio, October, 1869, the Formal Department of the 
Union opened its Biblical Museum in the lecture-room 
of the Town Street Methodist Episcopal Church. One 
of the local daily papers thus described it : 

"In connection with the Anniversary Institute tHere 
is placed in the large lecture-room of the Town Street 
Methodist Episcopal Church, for the inspection of all 
visitors attending the institute, the very large and 
valuable archaeological collection of Oriental antiquities, 
which comprises more than one hundred and fifty of the , 
photographs of the Palestine Exploration Eund, two 
hundred highly colored diagrams illustrative of Eastern 
manners and customs, antiquities of Egypt, Nineveh, 
Babylon, and Greece, the beautiful photographs of the 
Ordnance Survey of Jerusalem, the best and most ap- 
proved maps and charts of the Eastern lands. We also 
found models of Eastern objects of interest, a model of 
the Temple of Solomon, a model of the Jewish taber- 
nacle upon the exact scale of four cubits to an inch, a 

* The Sunday School Quarterly, July, 1865. 



THE INSTITUTE. 139 

model of an Eastern khan, or inn ; also, one of the city 
of Jerusalem and its surrounding country. 

"Collected in one room were complete Eastern 
costumes; also valuable relics, as lamps, bottles, shells, 
woods, water, and a variety of things designed to teach 
and unfold Scripture truth by way of suggestion and 
of visible illustration." 

31. Essays by ladies or gentlemen at an institute 
should be short and practical. Essays need not always 
be read by the author of them. Some person with a 
clear, strong voice, who is a good reader, may be 
requested to give them to the audience. 

32. Mutual Confessions. — This describes a service 
held at a certain institute which more than any other 
stirred up intense feeling. The question was asked at 
the morning session, "What are your personal habits 
concerning the Word of God? Eor what objects, in 
what way, and how much do you read it?" Written 
and anonymous answers were presented in the after- 
noon from "Mothers," "Sunday-school Teachers," "Pas- 
tors," "Private Christians," and others. All seemed to 
feel anew the claims of God's Word, and to be amazed 
at their strange neglect of it. 

33. Subdivision of Institutes. — It is a good thing 
to devote an afternoon to separate meetings of the 
several classes of workers. In one place let all Pastors 
convene, in another place the Superintendents. Hold 
one meeting for Librarians and Secretaries, another for 
Senior or Adult Class Teachers, another for Juvenile 
Class Teachers, and last, though by no means least in 
importance, a meeting for Infant Class Teachers. 

34. Social Moments. — All who attend the sessions 



140 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

of a hardworking institute will appreciate the announce- 
ment from the conductor's desk once at least during 
every session, "Ten minutes will now be spent in social 
conversation." 

35. Service of Consecration. — At the final session 
of an institute it will generally be appropriate to close 
with a special season of singing and prayer. We have 
seen hundreds of teachers rise in token of their entering 
into covenant to labor more faithfully in the Sunday 
school than ever before. 

The normal courses now provided for Sunday-school 
workers supply the demand which led the author, as 
early as 1866, to recommend the following general 
course of study for institutes and normal classes. The 
course is republished here simply as an item of historic 
interest. 

First. — A series of about fifty exercises, to extend 
through one or two years, as circumstances may deter- 
mine, as follows: 

(1.) Five lectures by a professional and experienced 
teacher on the principles and art of teaching. 

(2.) Ten lectures on the Bible, its history, writers, 
inspiration, original languages, style, evidences, etc., 
with some simple statements concerning Biblical criti- 
cism and interpretation. 

(3.) Ten specimen lessons for infant, advanced, and 
adult classes. 

(4.) Ten exegetical exercises from the Old and ISTew 
Testament history, from the Psalms, Prophecies, and 
Epistles. 

(5.) Ten catechetical lessons for concert recitation 
on Bible history, geography, chronology, ancient man- 



THE INSTITUTE. 141 

ners and customs, etc., covering in comprehensive les- 
sons the field of Biblical archaeology. 

(6.) Five lectures on the organization, objects, his- 
tory, management, church relations, and development 
of the Sunday-school work. 

Secondly. — A prescribed course of reading, which 
shall insure the careful perusal of the best books on 
teaching. 

It was in 1866 that the author made the following 
suggestion, which had so much to do with the develop- 
ment of the Chautauqua Assembly of 1874: 

Why might not the State conventions appoint a 
summer institute in the principal cities, to continue 
three or four weeks, taking candidates through the 
course in that time ? We are sure that the Christian 
families of these cities would open their homes to the 
country teachers for that length of time, as they are now 
so often opened to the members of general assemblies, 
conferences, and conventions. And we are confident 
that no hospitality would pay as well to the church. 
With competent lecturers and instructors, what moral 
power might these institutes soon wield, and right 
liberally could the managers and lecturers be paid. We 
need also a wisely and thoroughly prepared course of 
study for all teachers — a course that may be employed 
in theological schools, colleges, seminaries, local insti- 
tutes, teachers' meetings, and regular church normal 
classes. 

Among the advantages to be reaped from such an 
arrangement we may mention the following : * 



* These words were written in 1866, long before the suggestion at the Lon- 
don Centenary (1880). 



142 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

(1.) Its universal use, actual or contemplated, will 
incite many to use it. Men go in crowds. What 
interest and power attach to the "week of prayer" — 
from the simple fact that each offered prayer is a fila- 
ment in that wondrous belt of Christian devotion that 
girdles the globe during the first eight days of the new 
year ! 

(2.) The plan will tend to unite schools, and 
bring the talent of each into the service of all. One 
reason of our present impotency is the want of 
harmony and coaction among the various denomi- 
nations. 

(3.) It will encourage the right men to prepare 
suitable text-books and manuals for teachers. There has 
hitherto been singular deficiency in this department of 
religious and educational literature. Give us the insti- 
tute as a fact, and there are men among us who will 
provide "helps" for the teachers. 

(4.) It may be said that we cannot find competent 
lecturers and teachers. The movement will develop the 
men. Pastors will become theological professors, and 
the practical teachers of our public schools will be de- 
lighted to use their talents in aiding this Sunday-school 
reform. At any rate, the most careless use of a pre- 
scribed course will be a vast improvement upon the 
present indifference and neglect which so weaken the 
influence of our Sunday schools. 

For local and general institutes some previous prep- 
aration is needed besides that expended upon the 
programme. 

It is important to select the proper persons to aid in 
"carrying out" the programme. If a condensed address 



THE INSTITUTE. 143 

of fifteen minutes is required, do not employ for the 
purpose a notoriously tedious essayist or lecturer, who, 
having obtained the floor, will keep it for any length of 
time, in spite of the conductor's hints and bell-taps. Do 
not engage men simply because of their personal worth, 
their relation to the church in which you meet, or the 
public esteem in which they are held as professional 
men. We all know more than one excellent doctor of 
law, medicine, or divinity, and more than one superior 
jurist, whom we should not select to instruct a class of 
Sabbath-school teachers or to entertain an audience of 
Sabbath-school people. General Clinton B. Fisk, in 
writing about a certain convention, said, "Pray that the 
gift of 'speakin' in meetin' ? may be measurably 
abridged for the week." Let us select men who have 
something to say, and have also the gift of stopping at 
the right time. 

Have all officers and persons who are to take a leading 
part in the exercises appointed sufficiently long before- 
hand to warrant ample preparation, and such adjust- 
ment of their business as to insure regular attendance. 
Insist upon a promise of such attendance so as to guard 
against the slightest probability of disappointment. 
There is a successful layman in N"ew York who, when 
an institute programme is made out, forwards a copy 
and addresses a note to each party interested in it, and 
the day before that for which any special exercise is 
announced he addresses a second communication to the 
party responsible for it, to prevent forgetfulness and 
insure attendance. 

Select a good room. Have it ready in time. It is 
a serious hindrance to the success of an institute to find 



144 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

at the appointed hour a room just opened, cold, half- 
swept, or full of dust. 

Let ample notice be given. See that the local, 
secular, and religious papers frequently refer to the 
institute. Pay them for the service if necessary. Pre- 
pare pulpit notices and send them, not by mail, but by 
some committee, to the several pastors, whose cordial 
approval must by all means be secured. Large posters 
in conspicuous places are sometimes used for advertising 
institutes. Don't be afraid of a little expense. 

Request those in charge of the regular weekly prayer- 
meetings of the several churches to make the Sunday- 
school cause the topic of conversation and prayer at the 
meeting immediately preceding the institute. A special 
prayer-meeting for the success of the institute may 
be held. 

Request pastors to preach on the same subject the 
preceding Sabbath. A circular indicating three or four 
topics would not be improper. 

Prepare a complete list of Sunday-school officers and 
teachers connected with the schools to be represented in 
the institute. Register these in an Institute Roll-Book, 
and send a special "card of membership" with an earnest 
appeal in the form of a circular to every individual thus 
enrolled. Request from each a reply pledging attendance. 
Inclose a blank for the purpose. It may be a good plan 
to send to each superintendent a certain number of cards 
for "senior scholars," inviting such to a place in the 
institute. A personal invitation will often bring out 
persons who would otherwise be entirely indifferent. 

Furnish your institute room for the occasion. Have 
Bible pictures and maps on the wall. Secure the maps 



THE INSTITUTE. 145 

necessary to illustrate all parts of Bible geography. 
Place a large, clean blackboard on the platform, furnish 
a rubber or brush, and a supply of crayons. Hang a 
clock where the conductor and teachers can see it. Pro- 
vide an organ or melodeon — a piano also, if practicable. 
On the conductor's table place a "call-bell." Buy a full 
supply of paper and pencils for the use of the institute. 
In every seat put Bibles, singing-books, and pro- 
grammes, and do this before the hour for commencing. 
You need a large dictionary. Sometimes a verbal criti- 
cism is or ought to be made, and it is well to have an 
authority convenient. For the same reason, such a 
Biblical Cyclopaedia as Smith's Unabridged ought to be 
on the table. It will not always appear pedantic to have 
Greek and Hebrew lexicons for reference. 

Let the whole preparation for an institute contem- 
plate the improvement of teachers. Don't spoil it by 
consulting the public taste. You do not mean to enter- 
tain the public, but to prepare for edifying them. Have 
your own way, and rather close the door against the 
young and frivolous than allow them to degrade the 
character of your work. 

Do not consider great numbers as necessary to suc- 
cess. Ten earnest teachers can fill a meeting with in- 
terest. I heard Balph Wells say one day that the best 
Sunday-school meetings he had ever attended were inci- 
dental conversations at the close of some regular service, 
when a few met at the door or in the aisle, and some 
question was started of practical importance, and every- 
body said about it just what he thought, and in an 
entirely informal way. 

Resolve to have a season of profit. There is a great 
10 



146 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

deal in simply willing a thing to be. Ten loungers in 
different parts of a church, wondering why nobody 
comes, looking at their watches to see whether they had 
not better adjourn sine die because so few have arrived, 
groaning over a lack of interest in the cause — such men 
will soon disperse, to report sad delinquencies in their 
fellows. But should one earnest man summon the rest 
to the front seats, urge all to wrest from the present 
disappointment a rich blessing, and give all something 
to do, the institute would be successful. 

If strangers from abroad are expected, let the com- 
mittee of arrangements see that preparations are made 
for conducting guests to their homes promptly. Provide 
more homes than you may have pledged names of dele- 
gates. 

As for the place of holding an institute, let it some- 
times be where most needed, and not where most wel- 
come. A few living souls from one locality passing 
over into a Macedonian neighborhood may find no less 
profit to themselves in an institute which shall quicken 
slothful, lukewarm, unawakened church members into 
a new life and service. 

On each programme or on a separate circular may 
be printed such of the following "Directions" and 
"Mottoes" as may meet the approval of the "Committee 
on Preparation :" 

OUK SUNDAY SCHOOL INSTITUTE 

will soon commence its sessions. 

Directions. 

1. Pastors, parents, Sunday-school officers and teachers, the 

scholars, and all others who are interested in the study of the Word 

of God, are cordially invited to attend. 



THE INSTITUTE. 147 

2. Ascertain the day and date of opening, and resolve to be pres- 
ent regularly and punctually until the close of the institute. 

3. Bring with you a Bible, Bible-maps, blank-book, and pencil, 
and take full notes of the proceedings. 

4. Study the lessons assigned with great care. 

5. Pray at the fireside and in the closet for God's presence and 
blessing. 

6. Send to the conductor's table any suggestions or inquiries you 
wish to make. It is not necessary that you sign your name. 

7. Invite your friends and fellow-workers to attend the institute. 

8. Frequently, fervently, and with faith, ask God's blessing upon 
all our exercises. 

Programme Mottoes. 

"The things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, 
the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach 
others also." — 2 Tim. ii. 2. 

"God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily 
prophets, thirdly teachers." — 1 Cor. xii. 28. 

"Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that 
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." — 2 
Tim. ii. 15. 

"He who neglects God's Word, and saith, 

'I know God,' is deceived ; 
The truth that quickeneth through faith 

His heart hath not received ; 
Belief that comes from heaven's abode 
Inclines man to the Word of God." — Gellert. 

"On the next Sunday — who knows? — perhaps I shall rest in the 
graveyard. 

Some one perhaps of yourselves — a lily, broken untimely, 

Bow down his head to the earth. Why delay I? The hour is ac- 
complished. 

Warm is the heart. I will soiv, for to-day groivs the harvest of 
heaven" — Tegner, Longfellow's Translation. 

1. An institute must have leaders who possess enthu- 
siasm, common sense, tact, and experience. No com- 
munity need go far to find a man competent to conduct 
a Sunday-school institute. It is not eloquent lectures 



148 THE MODEEN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

we need. Blackboard ingenuities, dissolving from acros- 
tic into enigma, and from enigma into rhyme, are not 
necessary to good institutes. Elaborate essays, brilliant 
class exercises, marvelous object-lessons, are not indis- 
pensable. A plain old farmer in Western 'New York 
listened for a long time to some details of method by 
"representative men," as they were called, at a Sunday- 
school convention. He then said, "Mr. Chairman, in 
our school we begin the session with common sense, 
continue it with common sense, and close it with common 
sense." The old man's growl — for it was nothing more 
— had, after all, a good undertone. And we need to be 
frequently reminded that, after sanctified earnestness, 
we need nothing so much as common sense in our Sun- 
day-school work. IsTow let ten, fifty, or one hundred 
earnest men and women meet together to compare diffi- 
culties and plans, to aid and edify each other, and I am 
confident that the institute cannot be a failure. The 
man who is to take charge of such meetings should be ac- 
quainted with the practical details of the Sunday school, 
and should at the same time be competent to manage a 
public meeting — should have at least a slight acquaint- 
ance with parliamentary usages. 

2. Samuel P. Bates, Esq., a distinguished public- 
school educator, in his lecture on the "Method of 
Teachers' Institute," says concerning the president of 
such a body, "He should in the first place have placed 
in his hands an exact programme of exercises, detailing 
the time which each is to occupy, and a limitation upon 
that which is allowed to each person in debate. When 
the time has arrived for an exercise to close, it is his 
duty to give prompt notice of the fact, and announce 



THE INSTITUTE. 149 

and be ready to enter immediately upon that which is 
to follow. Much of the interest and profit depend upon 
the promptness and despatch with which the presiding 
officer brings on and closes the exercises as marked 
down in the programme." Says another, "He should be 
an earnest man, prompt, decided, courteous, well ac- 
quainted with the rules of deliberative bodies. He 
should keep the meetings moving briskly, confine the 
speakers in discussion to the subject announced to be 
discussed, and have courage enough to stop, without 
respect of persons, any speaker who exceeds his allotted 
time, if a certain time has been allotted." 

3. The secretary should be able to report the best 
things of an institute in such a systematic and abridged 
form that the reading of his minutes will form a resume 
of the session, and have all the advantages of a con- 
ductor's review. Indeed, every member should keep 
full notes. The secretary may put a syllabus of the pro- 
ceedings of each session on the blackboard. 

4. The opening exercises of an institute should be 
models of order and fervor. Let no notions of pro- 
priety chill the spiritual zeal of such an occasion. Re- 
member the spiritual aim of the Sabbath school and of 
the institute. Now and then engage in a brief audible 
or silent prayer during the session. Sing, read, and 
pray "with the spirit and with the understanding also." 
Dr. Edward Eggleston says on the subject of singing at 
Sunday-school conventions, "Nothing helps a conven- 
tion more than good singing. By good singing we mean 
also religious singing. Do not use dull hymns, nor 
hymns that are not just in the key of the spirit of the 
convention. Sabbath-school music, full of enthusiasm 



150 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

and of spiritual feeling, is the very best. A good chor- 
ister, who understands singing with devotional effect, 
should be selected beforehand to lead the convention, 
and the monotony of the exercises should frequently be 
broken by singing one or two appropriate stanzas." 

5. I may add to these suggestions the counsel given 
by Professor Bates to the instructors of public-school 
institutes. They apply to all who attempt in Sabbath- 
school institutes to lecture and teach. He says, "The 
instructor should be apprised of the part he is to perform 
in time for him to make careful preparation, and be able 
to present well-digested views. In order to discharge 
his duties profitably, he ought to be able to answer in a 
clear manner the following questions : For what purpose 
do scholars pursue this branch ? Are the methods of 
instruction which have heretofore been practiced such 
as are calculated to secure the best and the largest re- 
sults ? If not, what changes can be made to improve 
them ? Can I develop and elaborate the plan which I 
would adopt in teaching this branch, so as to secure the 
results for which the study is pursued, and at the same 
time secure the interest and enthusiasm of my pupils ? 
Until an instructor can answer these questions intelli- 
gently, he is not prepared to stand up before a company 
of teachers and demand their attention." 



THE TEACHERS' MEETING. 151 



CHAPTEK IX. 

THE TEACHERS^ MEETING. 

When I speak of a "teachers' meeting" I do not refer 
to an annual, quarterly, or monthly business meeting of 
the Sunday-school teachers. 

I do not understand the teachers' meeting to be the 
occasional sociable held in a private house, or in the 
parlor of the church, and designed to promote friendli- 
ness among these workers in the church. 

The teachers' meeting is not an adult Bible class for 
the study of the subject-matter of the next Sunday's 
lesson. Many teachers' meetings have been utterly 
ruined by this false conception of its mission. A num- 
ber of excellent people have come together in utter 
ignorance of the lesson. They have studied it very 
much as they would in the church on Sunday in a regu- 
lar Bible class. There have been teachers and pupils, 
questions and answers, solemn reflections, practical ap- 
plications, and, too often, mere controversy upon obscure 
passages, trifling points, and doctrinal inferences; and 
this controversy sustained by two or three interested 
parties, while the majority of the teachers were annoyed 
beyond measure. At first the teachers attend this meet- 
ing ; they feel their need of aid. But soon their interest 
wanes, they allow trifling obstacles to prevent regular 
attendance, and I am not surprised that the teachers' 
meeting is unpopular. 



152 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

The teachers' meeting, therefore, is not for the study 
of the lesson de novo. No man is prepared to attend 
this meeting until he has already studied and mastered 
the contents of the lesson. I knew one most excellent 
pastor, who sustained a successful teachers' class for 
years, who always expected each of his teachers to recite 
the lesson from memory immediately after opening the 
meeting. He took it for granted that all had made as 
thorough preparation as possible, so that they knew the 
lesson before coming to the place. 

The best conductor of such services should be placed 
in charge, be he pastor, superintendent, or teacher. No 
official prerogative should prevent the employment of 
the best man or woman for the position. 

The meeting should be held in a cheerful, comfortable 
place. A normal-class room in the church should be 
fitted up in the best style with tables, chairs, carpets, 
maps, pictures, blackboard, cabinet of archaeological 
curiosities and illustrative apparatus, library of books, 
especially on the art of teaching, magazines, and other 
periodicals. 

The meeting should be held regularly. Nothing 
should ever be allowed to interfere with it. 

The sessions should generally be too short. Better to 
have the members of the class go away ten times regret- 
ting that the service was not longer, than to go away 
once feeling that they had been wasting time. 

Never scold those present because so many are absent. 
A cheerful spirit is essential in the teachers' meeting. 

Resolve to have a good and profitable meeting even 
though but three attend. Nowhere is the Master's 
promise, "Where two or three are gathered," more 



THE TEACHERS'' MEETING. 153 

likely to be fulfilled than in the Sunday-school teachers' 
meeting. 

The teachers' meeting is a teachers' meeting. It is a 
meeting of teachers, designed to increase their efficiency 
as teachers in a general way, but especially to prepare 
them to teach the particular lesson of the ensuing Sab- 
bath to the various grades of pupils in their school. It 
is a meeting for collecting illustrations, for discussing 
methods of approach to a class, for framing and compar- 
ing questions, for canvassing the difficulties which they 
expect to meet — difficulties which arise from the pecul- 
iar circumstances and characteristics of their pupils. 

If this be the true idea of the teachers' meeting, 
several practical directions of necessity follow. 

1. Let the shortest possible time be spent at the 
opening of the session in the resume of the subject-mat- 
ter of the lesson. One teacher may make his statement 
of it. The others may listen, criticise, modify, and 
thus bring before the minds of all the theme which they 
have already investigated. 

2. Let the lesson be studied with an eye to the pecul- 
iarities of the locality in which next Sabbath it is to be 
taught. "What is there in this lesson for our com- 
munity ?" Are there important moral duties brought to 
the surface — such as "Sabbath observance," "purity of 
speech," "parental fidelity," "reverence for parents ?" 
Which truth shall we make emphatic on next Sabbath ? 
Thus teachers may agree upon a general assault all along 
the lines, and such concentration will prove of immense 
value to that community. 

3. Let the laws of adaptation be applied to the lesson 
in the teachers' meeting. The school is composed of a 



154 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

great variety of pupils. Some are old, some young, 
some church members, others impenitent and irreligious. 
How may the truths of each lesson be put in the most 
effective and quickening way before the minds of the 
pupils ? The method employed with success by the 
primary teacher may not be in detail valuable to the 
teachers of either the juvenile or senior classes, but 
from the plans of the infant-class teacher there come 
richest suggestions, which greatly aid the others. A 
busy man who at his trade picks up practical illustra- 
tions, or the woman who in connection with her domestic 
duties finds points and parables which will lay the truth 
near the understanding of her pupils, may confer un- 
speakable blessing upon the most cultured teacher, who, 
coming from the atmosphere of the drawing-room and 
library, has too little knowledge of the real experiences 
of everyday life in his pupils. At every teachers' meet- 
ing the question should be asked and answered, "How 
may we illustrate the truths of this lesson so that all our 
pupils will be able to grasp and retain it ?" There may 
be much helpful practice in illustration in one or more 
of the following lines : Draw on slates or paper maps to 
illustrate the topography ; prepare a diagram or outline 
to present several facts, topics, or truths contained in 
the lesson ; select the elements of the lesson which may 
be pictured or otherwise represented by pencil or crayon ; 
two or three incidents may be called for by which the 
truths of the lesson may be illustrated to the average 
pupil; comparisons and metaphors may be given by 
which to illustrate the leading truths of the lesson ; the 
leader may call for facts of history, sacred or profane, 
by which to illustrate and enforce the lesson. 



THE TEACHERS* MEETING. 155 

4. Let some time be spent in preparation for word- 
picturing. This is one of the most effective methods of 
teaching. It appeals to the imagination. It transfers 
vivid, life-like scenes from the book to the brain. Ser- 
mons that are full of pictures captivate their hearers. 
The Great Master taught in parables. The mightiest 
teachers of to-day preach in pictures. Sunday-school 
teachers may in the teachers' meeting collect material 
for word-pictures, and construct word-pictures true to 
topographical, archaeological, and personal reality, true 
to the reality of action, full of vividness and power. 
Such an exercise as this among plain and ordinary peo- 
ple would be a perpetual inspiration. Small successes 
would encourage them to larger endeavor, and during 
the week each would come prepared to contribute his 
quota from thought and observation and experience for 
the general good. 

5. Let some time be spent in conversation, or class 
experience, by individual teachers, either in the manage- 
ment or instruction of their pupils. Experience, sym- 
pathy, prayer, plans for concerted action, might thus 
infuse a new life into the average Sunday school. The 
occasional class-meeting for personal experience in re- 
ligious life and work would be exceedingly helpful to 
Sunday-school teachers. 

6. Make an arrangement with the teachers who may 
not be able to be present at the meeting to spend that 
hour in the study of the lesson at home. This will pro- 
mote a feeling of unity, deepen the interest of all, and 
kindle a desire on the part of all to attend. 

In 1861 the author of this volume made the following 
suggestion in support of a temporary expedient for hold- 



156 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

ing a teachers' meeting. Even earlier than that he used 
the uniform lesson in his Sunday school. The first ex- 
periment in this blending of the teachers' and prayer 
meeting was made in 1857. 

There can be no successful Sabbath school without 
a regular meeting of the teachers. When shall this 
meeting be held ? 

1. Not on Sabbath. We already have too much to do 
on the "day of rest." 

2. Not on Saturday evening. Home duties, prep- 
aration for Sabbath, and choir-meetings are in the way. 

3. On what other evening is it practicable? We have 
so few "evenings at home/' and there are so many other 
meetings, especially in cities — concerts, lectures, polit- 
ical gatherings, etc., etc. In our country churches many 
of our best teachers live at some distance from the place 
of meeting. It is as much as they can afford to attend 
the regular weekly prayer-meeting. 

4. Why not associate the teachers' meeting in some 
way with the regular prayer-meeting? The minister 
may make a brief exegetical and practical lecture on the 
lesson for the coming Sabbath. An hour may be spent 
in prayer. After prayer-meeting the superintendent 
can convene the teachers for the transaction of Sunday- 
school business. 

5. Advantages of this method. (1) The teachers 
attend the weekly prayer-meeting. (2) The teachers 
are present at the "teachers' meeting." (3) Time is 
saved. (4) The Sabbath-school workers are brought 
into contact with those members of the church who sel- 
dom think of that field of labor. (5) The sympathy of 
the pastor in the Sabbath school is secured. (6) It 



THE TEACHERS'' MEETING. 157 

secures a more thorough preparation on his part for his 
usual exhortation or lecture. (7) Gives point and 
definiteness to the prayers offered. (8) Encourages 
prayer in behalf of the Sabbath school. (9) Suggests 
to parents the leading topics upon which their children 
are to be instructed and examined on the succeeding 
Sabbath. (10) Attracts the older scholars to the 
prayer-meeting. 

6. This is not mere theory. It has been repeatedly 
and successfully tried. 



158 THE MODERN" SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



CHAPTEE X. 

THE TEACHER AT WORK. 

The Sunday-school teacher conveys to the life of the 
pupil the forces of Sunday-school organization and en- 
dowment. He is the carbon point from which the light 
flashes. Out of sight may be engine, fire, and dynamo, 
but he is the ultimate expression of their power. There- 
fore we cannot too highly exalt the office and work of 
the Sunday-school teacher. 

If the pastor will expend energy of instruction and 
inspiration upon the teachers of his school, we can 
almost excuse him from other responsibilities in the 
institution. He may make these officers of the school 
sub-pastors in the church. He may train, and in so 
many church ministries employ them. In fact, his 
value to the school is to be measured by his work in 
behalf of and through his Sunday-school teachers. 

In like manner we take the teachers to measure the 
effectiveness of the superintendent. They depend so 
much upon his wisdom in judgment and tact in admin- 
istration. It is for him to arrange and carry out the 
programme of school exercises, and thus to determine 
whether order or confusion, possible concentration or 
interruption, shall characterize the hour. Should he 
fail to govern, they must fail to teach. The best super- 
intendent, as I have elsewhere said, is the one who guar- 
antees the best opportunity to those who are appointed 
to teach. 



THE TEACHER AT WORK. 159 

I fear that many Sunday-school teachers are ap- 
pointed carelessly, and with little reference to natural 
fitness, intellectual preparation, or personal earnestness. 
The chance thought or whim of a superintendent, the 
pastor's desire to enlist the sympathies of an individual 
or family in the church, or other considerations of an 
entirely personal character — on such things as these 
rests the appointment of many Sunday-school teachers. 

In the majority of cases the responsibility is left with 
the superintendent. The vote of the teachers' meeting, 
if required, is a matter of form. I have known the 
constitution of some schools to provide a "teachers' 
committee," consisting of the pastor, superintendent, 
and his assistant, whose recommendation was necessary 
in order to an election by the teachers' meeting. This 
is an improvement on the one man method. 

In the selection of teachers in the average Sunday 
school what criterion of fitness have we ? Almost none. 
To what examinations do we subject the candidate? 
None. What pledges do we require ? None. What 
doctrinal tests do we apply ? None. And many pastors 
do not know to-day what kind of theology two-thirds of 
the teachers are giving to their classes. What do we 
say about church membership ? Nothing. Many schools 
do not even require personal piety. How many teachers 
are refused or removed from office because they lack 
spirituality, do not study, do not attend the teachers' 
meeting, are not punctually present at the opening of 
the Sabbath school, or because they are irregular in 
attendance ? Let superintendents answer. 

This radical defect requires speedy reform. The 
cause is suffering from the incompetency, irregularity, 



160 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

and indifference of teachers more than from any other 
cause — more than from all other causes combined. I 
propose here to offer a few hints on the subject of 
appointing teachers. 

1. Do not organize so many classes as to require the 
appointment of inefficient persons. It is better in a 
school of one hundred scholars to have only five teachers 
who are studious, spiritual, and successful, than to add 
fifteen to the list who know little and care less about the 
cause. Let competency in the candidate, and not a 
vacancy in the school, be the ground of his election. 

2. Have stated times for the appointment and in- 
stallation of teachers — say twice, or, at most, four times 
a year. Mark the occasion, by the infrequency and 
regularity of its recurrence, that it may be appreciated, 
anticipated, and prepared for as one of the important 
and interesting exercises of the school. 

3. Require a probationary service from every candi- 
date, either as the assistant, for at least two months, of 
one of your best teachers, or as the teacher of a class. 

4. Require an examination upon the intellectual, 
practical, and spiritual fitness of the candidate. Pre- 
scribe a course of reading and study. Admit none who 
have not pursued it. "This requires mental power and 
application/' We want these in our Sunday schools. 
"But it requires a great deal of self-possession." So 
does the management of a class. And the teacher who, 
from excessive timidity, is not able to pass an examina- 
tion before a committee, is altogether too timid to make 
a useful teacher. As to the character of this course of 
study I do not wish to say much. Ten years hence, in 
our best schools, it will be more thorough than I now 



THE TEACHER AT WORK. 161 

dare to indicate. Let me propose as the lowest standard, 
that the teacher be able to prove by Scripture texts the 
leading points of our faith ; that he shall have read two 
or three works on the principles and art of teaching, and 
on the Sunday-school work in particular ; that he shall 
satisfy the committee of his ability to interest children 
in the study of Scripture, and to exercise a healthful 
authority over them as members of his class and of the 
school. With the normal provisions now made no 
untrained teacher need be employed. 

5. After his examination and recommendation by the 
committee, and his election by the teachers' meeting, let 
his appointment, or installation, or reception be as pub- 
lic as possible. It may take place before the school, or, 
if the school can also be present, before the church and 
congregation. It should be regarded and treated as a 
most solemn and important event. Is it not so in 
reality ? 

6. At this public reception the teacher should be 
required to make certain pledges. He should promise 
punctuality, prayerfulness, the preparation of ap- 
pointed lessons, the reading of books calculated to aid 
him, the visitation of absent scholars, co-operation with 
the superintendent in maintaining order, regular at- 
tendance upon the teachers' meeting and upon all the 
public and social means of grace connected with the 
church. 

7. A fervent address by the pastor on this occasion 
would be of advantage to the other teachers and the 
senior scholars. It would give to all who might hear it 
a higher estimate of this department of the church. It 
would awaken confidence in the thoroughness of our 

11 



162 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

work, call into our ranks the highest talent of the church, 
and pour into our treasuries all the means we need for 
the development and expansion of the system.* • 

It is in some such scheme that the pastor will find 
his most useful place in connection with the school. 
And when pastor and superintendent combine to exalt 
the standards, dignify the office, and prepare teachers 
who will be teachers indeed, the church will begin to 
appreciate the power of the Sunday school. 

Of course it goes without saying that if the teacher 
be a good man his simple presence will have a certain 
power. Steele said of Lady Hastings that "to know 
her is to be liberally educated." There are some people 
whose presence helps one to be good. The love that 
shines out of their eyes lights up other faces. Goodness 
is contagious, and people leave its incarnate presence to 
be haunted by it and to be held, and always more or less 
to be helped. But even goodness, without thought and 
intellectual quickening of some kind in it, becomes tire- 
some ; and goodness set to teach, and incompetent to do 
more than sit in silent, placid witness to the passive 
virtues, will soon use up its resources of exemplification 
and its power of commanding attention, and become an 
annoyance. A marble statue would be better, for one 
expects nothing from marble but silence and stability. 
Children and young people are not fond of statues. 
They like living people, with breath, movement, wit, 
light, and power in them. A Sunday-school teacher 
must be more than good. He must be awake and alive 
on all sides and all through. He must know something. 

* In Appendix A see a form for the public recognition of the Sunday-school 
teacher. 



THE TEACHER AT WORK. 163 

Indeed, he must know many things. He must be able 
to lay hold, with a vigorous, gracious hold, of his class 
in the lines where their present interest runs, and not 
merely in the lines in which they ought to run. It is a 
mistake for spiritually minded people to confine them- 
selves to the spiritual side of things, and to expect 
thereby spiritually to help young people. The teacher 
must go to his scholars where they are, and touch them 
at susceptible points, leading them up to the higher 
realm he has reached, teaching them through the things 
in which they are already interested of the things they 
ought to love. These two things, then, are necessary: 
(1) that the teacher know and have what his scholars 
ought to know and have ; and (2) that he know well and 
be well able to use for higher and holier ends what they 
already know, have, and relish. The heavenly and the 
earthly must be combined in the qualifications of one 
who would lead the earthly towards the heavenly. 
Therefore the Sunday-school teacher must know the 
subjects he is to teach and the pupils he is to teach. 
He must love both subjects and pupils, and take 
pleasure in the wisest ways of teaching. He is to 
teach the Word of God; to teach Christ through the 
Word; and to so teach Christ through the Word as to 
bring souls living in this world into vital union with 
the Lord. 

Let me call attention to some of the conditions of 
success in Sunday-school teaching, natural and super- 
natural, the one never antagonizing the other. Other 
things being equal, he who does his best in the use of 
natural powers and conditions will have at readiest 
and largest command the spiritual power he desires. 



164 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Therefore I commend to the Sunday-school teacher the 
highest human standards ; the best, strongest, and most 
successful schemes, rules, and appliances which have 
been recognized and adopted by the wisest and most 
enterprising secular educators ; the best text-books, the 
best rooms, seats, maps, and pictures available, that no 
day school may excel the church school in order, enthu- 
siasm, and methods. Lay hold of science, literature, 
and art. Use them all to enrich and strengthen you as 
a teacher. All the while, and with all these subsidiaries 
at perfect command, do not forget that the end we seek 
is not to be attained by "might, nor by power," but by 
the Spirit of the Lord. We do not depreciate "might" 
nor "power." Only this : we do not expect ourselves to 
accomplish the work, even though the Spirit of the Lord 
insists upon the use of human "might" and "power." 
Not by wire, not by insulating process, not by ingenious 
signal-key, but by electricity, is the telegram sent. But 
the wire and insulation and some signal system are 
necessary. Thus interdependent are divine energies 
and human agencies. It is fanaticism to undervalue 
either. Let us, therefore, take up some of the conditions 
or laws—call them what you will — to which the teacher 
must conform. 

Intellectual vigor and activity depend, to a great 
degree, upon right physical conditions. Food, air, 
bodily postures and restrictions spoil many a good ser- 
mon. The Sunday school has suffered more than the 
sermon from the same hindrances. In former years the 
school was remanded to the "basement." What hurt 
was done by low ceilings, damp walls, dark windows, 
and wretched ventilation no pen can record. But the 



THE TEACHER AT WORK. 165 

folly of the past is not likely to be repeated. A reform 
has already set in. One of the leading reformers in the 
United States was the late Hon. Lewis Miller, of Akron, 
O., whose Sunday-school room was the first of the new 
order, and so distinctive as to give the name of the 
"Akron style" to the "new departure" in ecclesiastical 
architecture. Seated in a natural amphitheatre with 
his school one day at a picnic in the country, he said to 
himself, "This is what we want every Sunday ;" and he 
set about the development of a Sunday-school room 
which should meet the practical demands of a school like 
his own. He began a correspondence with Sunday- 
school men everywhere, asking for suggestions. The 
author of this volume remembers the answer he gave to 
Mr. Miller's question: "Provide for 'togetherness' and 
'separateness.' Have a room in which the whole school 
can in one minute be brought together for simultaneous 
exercises, and with the minimum of movement be 
divided into classes for uninterrupted class-work." 
This bit of philosophy was in harmony with Mr. Mil- 
ler's practical purpose and plan. JSTowhere is the true 
architectural thought of the Sunday school so well em- 
bodied. Light, height, expansion, separation at will, 
unity, color, beauty, utility, are all expressed in this 
admirable creation of Mr. Miller. 

The teacher needs the help of architecture, comfort- 
able sittings for himself and his class, good ventilation, 
carpets, pictures, brightness, and all the elements which 
put him and those who depend upon him for instruction 
at their best. If to this be added the careful govern- 
ment which gives the class ample time and absolute free- 
dom from interruption during the lesson-study, we shall 



166 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

have the first law of success in teaching — favorable ex- 
ternal conditions. 

Our likes and dislikes have a strange and strong 
influence over our judgments. They affect the intellect 
and the conscience. You cannot listen with pleasure or 
profit to the sublimest and most substantial sermon by 
one against whom for personal reasons you have strong 
feelings. Whom you love you listen to with attention, 
especially if the love be strengthened by confidence in 
his character and in his resources of scholarship and 
originality. Indeed, perfect confidence and warm af- 
fection will magnify mediocrity into genius. It is 
sometimes amusing to see how much a love for the 
preacher can make out of his sermons. And the power 
of the preacher is enhanced by a knowledge of this love 
and confidence, and more than doubled by a recipro- 
cating affection. This law of mutual affection and con- 
fidence between teacher and pupils holds in the day 
school and in the Sunday school. Therefore the teach- 
er's character should be worthy of confidence. His 
natural and acquired qualifications should constantly 
confirm and increase the confidence of his pupils. His 
spirit should beget love. The week-day care of his 
pupils, in visitation and by correspondence, should pro- 
mote this love. The love of Christ in the teacher's 
heart, for the most unattractive and least amiable of his 
scholars, will soon bring the unpromising pupil into 
close relations with his teacher, and cause him to look 
up into his face with eager desire and perfect confidence. 

The more we think upon a scientific or religious 
subject the more we find it worthy of further and deeper 
thought, and the more eager we become to receive in- 



THE TEACHER AT WORK. 167 

formation concerning it. Mental activity develops in 
the student mental avidity. To the teacher such activ- 
ity imparts enthusiasm. He desires to satisfy the 
cravings of his pupils. Therefore the wise teacher 
knows how to whet his scholars' appetite in advance. 
He resolves by some means to cause his class to look 
forward with interest to the time and topic of the 
lessons. He gives hints, quickens curiosity, assigns 
topics or questions to individuals for at least a partial 
examination, alludes to the approaching lesson when he 
casually meets his pupils, occasionally writes a note of 
suggestion or inducement, and thus prepares his class 
to look for, to desire, and to expect a profitable session. 
This is in accordance with the law of anticipative inter- 
est. The best teacher knows how to awaken it, and is 
sure never to disappoint it. It is by this process that 
the teacher creates a reputation with his class, which is 
so powerful a factor, for example, in pulpit oratory. 
Certain men famed for eloquence will attract an ex- 
pectant crowd. The first sentence is received with open 
eyes and receptive hearts. What other men would have 
to win by ten minutes' effort these men have won in 
advance. They may talk platitudes and hold attention ; 
not for long, to be sure, but the anticipative interest 
excited in the hearers guarantees attention, to begin 
with. The best Sunday-school teacher understands this 
condition of power. 

There are difficulties in the way. It is not easy to 
preach one's self into a reputation which will draw mul- 
titudes, and cause them to sit open-eared and open-eyed 
when one begins to talk. The teacher is subject to 
the same limitations. Weariness of body, lack of in- 



168 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

tellectual discipline, want of taste for the particular 
line of study, preoccupation, a spirit of restlessness and 
of mischief — one or more of these not only renders this 
anticipative interest extremely difficult in many cases, 
but in the class, under the most auspicious circum- 
stances, there will be indifferent and lethargic pupils, 
for whom the words of the text-book might as well have 
been printed in Syriac or Choctaw. The teacher's 
voice of greeting has no more effect than the tick of a 
watch on the ear of a drowsy shepherd. There is 
needed, therefore, a work of awakening at the very out- 
set. Without this, the labors of the lesson hour will be 
wasted. The next law to which I call attention is that 
of mental awakening, by which the teacher's prepara- 
tion is made effective in the instruction of his class. 
There must be an awakening from reverie, from apathy, 
from wandering thoughts; an awakening to voluntary 
attention close and uninterrupted. How shall this be 
accomplished ? I shall answer later on. 

Once awake, another step must be taken by the 
scholar. It is not enough to be awake and to have his 
eyes fixed on an object. He must see so distinctly that 
he will have definite ideas as to what he looks at. One 
may read a sentence or hear a statement or see a form, 
and yet all the while the real meaning is obscure, as 
he at once discovers when he attempts to report his 
impression. He thought he knew, but a question or two 
exposes his error. The teacher must produce a clear 
apprehension on the part of his pupils. There must be 
definite ideas as to the historical elements, the actors, 
the topography, the time, the various events, the words 
spoken; in a word, the scene must be vividly appre- 



THE TEACHER AT WORK. 169 

hended just as it occurred. There must be definite 
knowledge as to the relations of persons and events to 
each other; as to the spiritual and practical truths 
taught or implied in the lesson. But how shall one do 
all this ? In this power lies the gift of the teacher. 

Mind was made to act for itself ; to think, to work out 
by the truth given to it some other form of truth, to 
itself new, and to grow stronger by such individual and 
independent effort. True teaching is the process by 
which one mind promotes the growth of another mind. 
Or I may define it as the process by which a mind is 
arrested and awakened and set at its legitimate work 
of thinking — with a w^ise purpose. Teaching involves 
more in the pupil taught than in the cultivation of 
memory, by which he holds just what was given to him 
and just as it was given to him. Its test is not in the 
mere giving forth of forms of thought. It implies in- 
dependent efforts of the pupil beyond the limits of the 
knowledge imparted by the teacher. Teaching is not 
merely the art of putting things so that the things put 
remain, but of so putting them that they come forth in ' 
other and fresher forms. Teaching is not placing seeds 
in numbered envelopes, and then in labeled boxes. It is 
the putting of seeds into the right soil, at the right time 
and in the right way, so that there shall be something 
done with the seed by the soil, and results produced 
which seeds in envelopes and boxes could never have 
produced. This is the great law of mental self -activity , 
which is one of the very highest forms of teaching, and 
as rare as it is radical. 

I have thus far sought to show that success in teach- 
ing depends upon favorable external conditions; upon 



170 THE MODEEN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

mutual affection and confidence as between teacher 
and pupil: upon the anticipative interest with which 
teacher and pupils approach the class exercise ; upon the 
mental awakening of every student; upon a clear ap- 
prehension of the subject-matter of the lesson ; and upon 
the mental self-activity excited by the processes and 
inspirations of the teacher. Is this all ? A thousand 
times — ~No. The highest success of the Sunday-school 
teacher depends upon that spiritual acceptance of the 
truth by which it becomes effectual in the promotion of 
true feeling and true living. The intellect is not the 
whole of man with which the teacher has to do. Indeed, 
the intellect is simply an instrument which the teacher 
uses for developing the higher faculties of his scholars. 
There is the conscience. There are the emotions. There 
are the faculties for spiritual discernment. There is the 
will. It is only when one knows the truth and when 
conscience approves it, the will chooses or assents to it, 
and the affections center in it, that the truth becomes a 
power in the life. This is the end of all truth — of all 
divine spiritual truth — the apprehension, realization, 
acceptance, and love of it, that knowing truth we may 
be true. And this, therefore, is the teacher's work: (1) 
To see that the truth is imparted; (2) that it is so 
imparted that it will be received; (3) that it is so 
received that it will be retained; (4) that it is so re- 
tained that it will be employed for personal growth, 
human good, and God's glory. 

These seven laws of teaching power recognize and 
respect the individuality of the teacher. By whatever 
process he can secure the results embraced in a true 
definition of teaching, let him go to his work un- 



THE TEACHER AT WORK. 171 

hampered by empirical regulations or by mechanical 
appliances. But there are certain ways in which hu- 
man nature works. These ways are to be respected and 
observed, and to some of them I call attention. (See 
Appendices C and D, and the Normal Praxes in chapter 
vii.) These definitions and praxes embrace the funda- 
mental principles of pedagogy. They are suggestive 
hints rather than extended discussions of the topics pre- 
sented. They are seed-thoughts designed to start in- 
quiry and investigation, and thus to promote in the 
teacher the habit of thinking on his own account and 
that in the direction of his professional labors. 

The teacher is to deal with the human soul; to 
appreciate the importance of knowledge; to cultivate 
his own mental powers of acquisition and of retention, 
that what he knows he may keep; that what he keeps 
he may apply and communicate in harmony with the 
constitution and capacities of the soul. He is to acquire 
the art of Bible study, of lesson-growing, and of getting 
at the very root-truths of the lessons he imparts. He is 
to know how to approach his scholars; how to think 
with them and as they think ; and to know, as he must, 
the world in which they live. He must know the art of 
arresting and holding the attention of his scholars ; the 
art of illustrating the truth he would impart; the art 
of probing the mind by well-framed questions, eliciting 
satisfactory answers, by all of which methods he 
quickens the student to independent intellectual activ- 
ity, to the wise review of the knowledge acquired ; and 
thus he masters the art of adapting truth to the various 
classes, conditions, and needs of the pupils he is re- 
quired to teach. 



172 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



CHAPTER XL 

THE LESSON REVIEW. 

The Sunday-school lesson review may be a review 
of the scholars as to their attainments, or a general 
rehearsal of one or more lessons by the superintendent 
for the purpose of giving to the scholars a clearer view 
of the truth taught, or of deepening the moral and re- 
ligious impressions which it is designed to make. 

There may be a review of one or of several lessons. 
It may be conducted by a teacher in his class, or by a 
superintendent from the desk. It may occur weekly, 
monthly, quarterly, or annually. 

The "Concert-Review Service" is a public exercise 
designed to entertain and instruct an audience. The 
scholars may then be reviewed in order to show their 
real attainments in any particular branch of Biblical 
study. This partakes more or less of the character of 
an "exhibition," and is calculated, when judiciously 
conducted, to do great good. 

The "Rehearsal" is a preparation for such public 
service, and should be held on a week evening. 

The "Special Session" is a meeting designed to train 
a school in Bible history, geography, etc., that the fre- 
quent allusions to places and events in the regular les- 
sons may be at once recognized and understood. At 
these meetings the catechism, memory lessons, mission- 
ary exercises, etc., may be introduced. The character- 



THE LESSON EEVIEW. 173 

istics of all these services are : Frequent repetition and 
simultaneous recitation. 

Here are some of the advantages of the review. 

It secures the frequent reiteration of a lesson. The 
law in both secular and religious training is, "Precept 
upon precept ; line upon line." It is especially neces- 
sary in the religious sphere, because the demands of 
secular education occupy so much of the time of our 
young people. The activities of the age are so numer- 
ous, diverse, and intense, that to secure attention to re- 
ligious truth we must repeat again and again, and in the 
most attractive ways, the truth by which we would 
control the hearts and lives of our pupils. 

The defective teaching which too generally finds 
place in our Sunday schools, owing to the indifference, 
indolence, and incompetency of so many of our teachers, 
finds some compensation in a wisely directed and 
spirited general review. 

Variety in the school exercises is also secured. Forty- 
five minutes of catechetical study in a class may prove 
burdensome. The simultaneous exercise which a review 
requires will usually prove a pleasant relief. 

A well-conducted review is a tacit reproof to ineffi- 
cient teachers, and will often prove an incentive to 
greater diligence in preparation for the work of 
teaching. 

It is always profitable, to the best of teachers, to 
witness the handling of a subject by another. It will in 
this case furnish an illustrative lesson — a normal-class 
exercise — which the most competent teachers will most 
appreciate. 

The general review will probably present the truth in 



174 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

some new form to the teacher. He will find more in 
each lesson under the instructive drill of the reviewer, 
whoever he may be, than he found in its preparation for 
the class-recitation. 

The weekly review claims another great advantage. 
It places strong emphasis upon Bible study as the cen- 
tral idea and distinctive mission of the Sunday school. 
When, with zeal and tact and fulness of knowledge, a 
ten or fifteen minutes' review of the lesson takes place, 
every eye fixed upon the superintendent, every part of 
the exercise centred in that review, the thought will 
arise in the minds of all: The great work here is the 
study of the Word of God. 

The general review compels the superintendent to 
study, and he dares not be a superficial student if 
teachers and scholars who have devoted so much time to 
the preparation are by him to be examined in the lesson 
for the day. 

It is desirable to animate every school session by one 
leading and dominant thought. Unity in any pro- 
grame is important, and nowhere more so than in a Sun- 
day school. The unity is promoted by the general 
review. It brings the same subject before all at once. 
It gives force to the prayer, which embodies the thought 
of the day. It gives meaning and power to the lesson- 
hymn, which is to be sung as a part of the service. 

If for no other reason, I recommend and plead with 
all earnestness for the review, because in adopting it we 
thereby but follow the best methods of the best secular 
schools. 

Let me first speak of review m the class. The 
mastery of each lesson there will guarantee familiarity, 



THE LESSON EEVIEW. 175 

accuracy, and delight in the final review for the week, 
month, or quarter. All success in general "examina- 
tion" depends upon the manner in which individual 
recitations are conducted. The following plain rules 
may be of service : 

Every Sabbath introduce the lesson for the day by a 
two, three, or five minute' resume of the preceding 
lesson. 

Wherever the influence of one lesson may be traced 
in another, do not fail to recognize it. If last Sabbath 
you learned that John was baptizing at iEnon, and in 
the lesson to-day that Jesus conversed with the woman 
of Samaria at Jacob's well, do not fail to trace the con- 
nection between the two events (see John iv. 1-4). If 
next Sabbath you study about Joseph making himself 
known, and the week after about Jacob hearing the good 
news of Joseph's safety, find some bond — historical, 
logical, or mnemonical — by which you may unite them. 
In some way always link together the lessons for a 
quarter. 

Every Sabbath write out in a small blank book or 
on a sheet of paper a brief statement of the lesson. Let 
your scholars copy it. Put it into four or five manu- 
script lines — a condensation of the facts — and a prac- 
tical lesson appended. The following week read it over, 
and add a similar syllabus for that day. Keep it up for 
three months. Thus you repeat the substance of the 
first lesson eleven times in that quarter, the second ten 
times, the third nine times, etc. What wonder if your 
scholars know all about the twelve lessons when review 
day comes ! 

Persuade your pupils to use the "Daily Home Read- 



176 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

ings." These often complete the historical connections 
of the lessons. Question your class every Sabbath on 
this matter, and if possible secure from them a state- 
ment concerning each "reading," as to its bearings on 
the lessons for the week. 

Sometimes, in the review of a previous lesson, request 
one scholar to state all the facts about it which he can 
recall. Let another scholar supply his omissions and 
correct his misstatements. Then call for a third scholar 
to do the same. You will in this way recall the whole 
lesson, and keep up a perpetual interest in it. 

Or read the lesson elliptically . The teacher alone 
may use an open Bible, and omit principal words which 
the scholars are expected to supply singly or in concert. 
It would deepen the interest and profitableness of this 
method if the teacher himself could dispense with the 
open book. 

In all lesson reviews see that the scholars are per- 
fectly familiar with the Title, Topic, and Golden Text. 
If every week they are perfectly familiar with these ele- 
ments of the current lesson and of the previous lesson, a 
quarterly review will not be laborious. 

By a few words — which I may call help-words — the 
contents of the lessons may be fixed in the memory. For 
example, by the following we may be able to recall the 
first quarter's lessons for 1887: Dominion; Sin; Mur- 
der ; Ark ; Journey ; Strife ; Lamp ; Ten ; Fire ; Mount ; 
]STame ; Wine. 

Let me next speak of reviews fbom the desk. 

The several plans above suggested for teachers of 
individual classes may be modified and adopted by the 
manager of the general review. 



THE LESSON REVIEW. 177 

Although not connected with the lesson, nor legiti- 
mately involved in the discussion of this topic, I suggest 
the value of calling each Sabbath for the text of the 
morning sermon, or, if the school be held in the morning, 
the text of the previous Sabbath, and of drilling the 
school in the regular recitation of this text, so that at the 
quarterly review the texts of at least twelve sermons 
may be repeated. 

In all general reviews aim at preserving the historical 
order of lessons. Follow the chronology. As each event 
comes into notice draw from it an appropriate practical 
lesson. 

Adopt occasionally the analytical plan of reviewing 
a lesson. What persons are here named ? In what 
places? At what dates or times? Their doings? The 
doctrines and the duties taught ? Or inquire : (1) What 
facts here reported ? (2) What difficulties? (3) What 
important lesson? At another time call for the prin- 
cipal person in the lesson, and inquire: (1) What 
are the groupings — the time, place, companions, etc. ? 
(2) What actions by this principal person and by the 
others? (3) What qualities of character are brought 
out ? (4) What principles, what doctrine, what duties 
taught ? 

Announce one of the several practical truths taught 
during the quarter and then ask : In what lesson ? What 
were the circumstances ? etc. 

Use condensed outlines, and by representative letters 
put the lessons on the blackboard in a sort of sign- 
language, which the little people will delight in de- 
ciphering. 

The Topic and Golden Text may be made the central 
12 



178 THE MODEBN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

point of each lesson, and all the principal questions 
based upon them. 

A superintendent in New Jersey makes use of a long 
roll of paper, on which from week to week the prominent 
features of the lessons are recorded. As this is unrolled 
the school is reviewed. At the end of twelve weeks he 
has a lesson panorama. 

In conducting the weekly review the superintendent 
may fix upon one or more leading lessons, which he 
enforces at the time, and then at the quarterly review he 
may confine himself to these (in addition, of course, to 
the Titles, Topics, and Golden Texts). 

Divide among the classes the several parts of a review. 
For example, request Class No. 1 to recall the persons 
named in Lessons I. to III. ; Class No. 2, persons in 
Lessons IV. to VII. , etc. ; Class No. 6 may name places 
of first four lessons, etc. 

Select several memory "help-words" (as recom- 
mended to teachers on page 176) and place them on the 
blackboard, erasing portions of them as the school drill 
or questioning proceeds, until none but the initials are 
left. This will facilitate frequent repetition. 

Take a large map of the "Scripture World" or of the 
"Holy Land," and let the review be based on the geo- 
graphical elements of the lesson. As the superintendent 
points to a place, let the school name the persons and 
events associated with it in the quarter's lessons. 

As each lesson is thus brought into notice let the 
Title, Topic, Golden Text, Outline, and a practical 
truth be recited by the school. 

The review may comprise a series of word-pictures, 
by which the superintendent tests the acquaintance of 



THE LESSON" REVIEW. 179 

the school with the several lessons. Here, for example, 
is a word-picture from the life of Moses : 

A sand grave. Alarm. A long journey. A tired 
man. A well. Troughs. Shepherdess and six sisters. 
Shepherds. The helping hand. An early return leading 
to a question. A reply leading to two questions and a 
command. The stranger a son. 

Another form of word-pictures, which I called "Men- 
tal Review Pictures/' were published from quarter to 
quarter for several years. The following is a speci- 
men: "The lessons for the quarter are suggested in 
their order by mental representations as follows : 1. A 
dove hovers in the air, snow-white, its wings radiant 
with golden light, a sign to John the Baptist, a symbol 
of the work to be wrought in the world by the gospel, 
and a preparation for the ordeal of temptation through 
which he who receives the Spirit of the holy dove must 
pass. 2. Suddenly, far below the dove, stretches out 
an expanse of water, a lovely lake, in which the fisher- 
men cast their nets, and by the shores of which Christ 
invited them to become the 'fishers of men/ and near 
which in Capernaum He taught and wrought His won- 
ders. 3. From the radiant dove in the sky descend to 
the ]ake rays of eight from head and breast and wings, 
representing the 'power to heal' that had come to the 
sons of men through Christ, upon whom the dove had 
descended. 4. The descending rays from the dove 
form in letters of light on the lake the word 'forgive- 
ness/ 5. All at once a golden atmosphere fills the 
sky and sea. And above the distant hills I read the 
words 'Sabbath Day/ The picture is full of restful- 
ness. 6. Below the word 'Sabbath' rises a hill, and on 



180 THE MODERN" SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

the sea I see a ship. 7. All at once a darkened atmos- 
phere fills the picture. The light seems to be fading. 
One might think that seldom words were spoken. 8. 
On the hillside a man is sowing seed. 9. Not far from 
me I see a tree, and on one of its branches a bird. 10. 
The sky is black, the sea rages, and the ship is tossed in 
a wild tempest. 11. Beyond the ship and beyond the 
sea rise great walls of mountains in which tombs are 
hewn out. 12. In the foreground stands a beautiful 
maiden, her face fixed on the heavens, and I hear her 
say, 'He giveth life.' " 

Instead of these more elaborate plans of review, the 
superintendent may give a fifteen or twenty minute 
outline of the quarter's lessons in a practical talk, well 
illustrated, and closing with a forcible application and 
appeal to the school. 

Occasionally provide for written answers by the 
school. For example, call for answers to one or more of 
the following questions: "Which do you think is the 
most important truth brought out in the lessons for the 
quarter ?" "Which is the most beautiful clause or verse 
contained in these lessons ?" "What difficulties have 
you found which have not been settled?" This 
"Question Drawer" feature will prove both entertaining 
and useful. 

The leading practical lessons of the quarter may be 
thrown into a sort of "Bible reading." A prominent 
topic may be selected, and each Sabbath's selection be 
made to contribute to the enforcement and illustration 
of this topic. As teachers and scholars turn to given 
texts and read them, the superintendent may show their 
relation to the central thought of the "Bible reading." 



THE LESSON REVIEW. 181 

Always encourage the infant class to participate in 
the general review by the recitation of a few verses, by 
answering a few questions, and by singing a song. 

Secure a report from each class as to the scholars who 
have faithfully recited all the Topics, Golden Texts, 
Outlines, etc., for the quarter. This will form a "List 
of Honor." 

Whenever practicable arrange the review of each 
quarter into a "Concert-Review Service" for the profit 
of the congregation. This may be given on Sabbath 
evening instead of the regular church service, subject 
always to the wishes of the pastor. This concert service 
may comprise songs, addresses, responsive readings, and 
class examinations. 

At the "Concert-Review Service" the Scripture com- 
prising the lesson for a quarter may be read respon- 
sively for an opening exercise. This may be called the 
"Review Reading." 

The success of the Sabbath evening concert-review 
will be greatly facilitated by a week-evening rehearsal. 

It is not expected that all the suggestions here 
furnished will be available for all superintendents, or 
that more than two or three of them can be employed 
on the same occasion. Every man has his peculiar 
gift. Let him learn what it is, and then employ and 
improve it. 

Here is a picture upon which more than one of us 
may have looked : 

The superintendent strikes his bell. Order is not 
secured. The teachers and scholars still walk, talk, 
shuffle about, and read papers and books at pleasure. 
The superintendent asks a question. Nobody answers. 



182 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

He repeats it, and scolds the school for inattention, 
noise, and general neglect of preparation. He rings the 
bell again, asks the question again, scolds again, elicits 
one faint reply, propounds question number two, scolds 
the school, apologizes to visitors for the failure, stretches 
the truth a little when he says, "This is very unusual/' 
asks another question, talks tediously about some general 
truth in the lesson, and finally "changes the order of 
exercises/' All vote the general review a bore, and 
the superintendent himself thinks it might as well be 
abandoned. Carefully avoid such a failure as this. 

Never omit the "review." Let it be an invariable part 
of the programme. Be regular in requiring it every 
week, and your teachers and scholars will prepare for it. 

Be enthusiastic in reference to it. Study other men's 
ways of conducting it. Devise ways of your own. 
Make experiments. Secure variety. Put your whole 
soul into it. 

Be brief. A protracted review is likely to be a bore. 
Five minutes for a weekly review, eight or ten minutes 
for the monthly, and twenty or twenty-five for the 
quarterly. Be brief! Be brief! BEBKIEF! When 
you lose the attention of the school — quit. Quit before 
that. 

Prepare for reviews at the teachers' meeting by 
enlisting the teachers; explaining to them your plans 
and purposes, and eliciting frank criticisms from them 
upon your way of conducting the Sabbath reviews. 
Don't wince if they point out your blunders. You are 
not infallible. Urge them to prepare their scholars for 
review, and from week to week freely talk over methods 
and mistakes. 



THE LESSON REVIEW. 183 

Use the printing-press in your Sunday-school work. 
Send out circulars to parents, soliciting their co-opera- 
tion in securing home preparation by the scholars. Send 
occasional circulars to the scholars, pleading with them 
to study the several elements of each lesson, and to be 
ready for the review — weekly, monthly, and quarterly. 

Let the pastor give frequent notice from the pulpit 
of the requirements of the review, urging parents and 
scholars to give attention to this important part of the 
Sabbath study. A word from the minister is often 
heard and heeded by those who do not care so much for 
the superintendent's requests. 

Let the teachers in the class exercises keep in mind 
the coming review and prepare the scholars for it. 
Especially on quarterly review day, let ten minutes at 
least be occupied by the teachers with their several 
classes in special preparation. 

When the moment for review arrives, sing a single 
verse of some lesson-hymn, and sing it in a lively way. 
A song well sung prepares the school for work. 

See that all "lesson-leaves" and question-books are 
closed when the examination commences. Be rigid in 
this. Allow no frauds in Sunday-school recitation that 
would be rebuked or punished even in an ordinary pub- 
lic school. Such laxity demoralizes a Sunday school. 
Insist upon honesty. Require the teacher to enforce 
this rule. I cannot overstate its importance. 

Give the management of the review to the right man. 
Never mind official position. Let the greatest in place 
bow to the greatest in tact. A plain teacher may some- 
times do this work better than pastor or superintendent. 

Before commencing the review secure perfect order. 



184 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Allow nothing to interrupt it. One thing at a time. ~No 
whispering. No tract or paper distribution. ISfo collec- 
tions. Let the whole school be silent, and attend to the 
one thing — the lesson review. Don't ask a question 
until this silence is secured. 

Don't attempt in the review to cover too much 
ground. You cannot re-teach all that the teachers have 
taught. The reviewer has to do with general and 
salient points. In a quarterly review go over the whole 
ground once in a general way; then, if you have time, 
return and work up the details a little more fully. But 
don't try to do too much, and always quit when the time 
is up. 

Remember that your object is not entertainment. It 
is merely an exhibition of knowledge. ISTor is it a 
"drill" only. The review is designed to deepen the 
religious impressions which religious truth is calculated 
to make. Enter upon the duty with the zeal and faith 
and honest purpose a minister should have in preaching 
a sermon. 

When you call for an answer see that you get it, and 
that both question and answer are understood by the 
whole school. Let both be stated clearly. 

Call for an answer from all. If it must be repeated 
a dozen times, so let it be ; but do not leave the question 
until (from the entire room) you have received a round, 
full, harmonious, inspiriting answer. This, rightly 
managed, will make music, and all will enjoy it. Insist 
upon promptness, accuracy, distinctness, and heartiness. 

Avoid all sham and pretense. The simultaneous 
reply is calculated to mislead. It is a useful method of 
teaching, but remember that a "splendid" concert 



THE LESSON REVIEW. 185 

answer is not an evidence that all in the school are 
familiar with the lesson. On the strong tide of simul- 
taneous response many a blockhead floats into favor. 

Avoid frivolity. Be in earnest. Impress your pupils 
with the sacredness of the place and the day ; and while 
you may foster a spirit of cheerfulness, carefully guard 
against all foolish jesting with things divine. A joke 
that is sharpened with a Scripture text is a sword, the 
handle of which is a blade. 

Treat all answers with respect. Don't turn a laugh 
against the honest perpetrator of an erroneous or ridicu- 
lous reply. This is cowardly and injurious. 

Kindly restrain the bold, who answer too promptly. 

Tenderly encourage the timid, who answer too re- 
luctantly. 

Forbearingly endure the obstinate, who won't answer 
at all. Subdue them by overlooking their silence, and 
by speaking as kindly to them as though they were fore- 
most in reply. An obstinate child, once convinced that 
his voice is not missed by his teacher, will begin to use 
it to the best of his ability. 

Train your older scholars to answer. Young men 
answer boldly in college classes, singly or in concert, and 
lose no sense of dignity thereby. Let the teachers set 
the example. Whenever the superintendent desires it, 
let them answer the questions he puts to the school, that 
the older scholars may be assured that the service is not 
"all and only for children." 

If you have addresses in school, let them be in the 
line of the lesson for the day. 

Use, but don't abuse, the blackboard. Use it every 
Sabbath if you can thereby the better review the lesson. 



186 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Be willing to have it stand one "day without a line/ 5 
rather than use it so as to divert attention from the 

TEUTH. 

Let the last w r ords of all reviews be well chosen, and 
the most effective. Give a striking illustration, and 
frequently close with a practical question to which you 
ask no immediate reply. An interrogation point is very 
often a good point to leave with a school or congregation. 

Follow the review with a brief prayer. Lead a 
thoughtful school to the mercy-seat in fervent pleading 
for God's blessing on the service and on the truth 
taught. 



GRADATION. 187 



CHAPTER XII. 

GRADATION. 

The Sunday school is a school. There are strong ar- 
guments, elsewhere adduced, for so far modifying the 
title of at least one department now included under the 
general name of Sunday school, as to adapt it to a cer- 
tain class of young people; but, in fact, the Sunday 
school is and must be a school. 

It ranks with the secular school so far as its methods 
are concerned, modified, of course, by the different 
themes and text-books which we employ; but the mem- 
ory, the attention, the self -activity, the voluntary disci- 
pline, the thorough recitation, the careful examination, 
the frequent review, all of which are necessary to the 
acquisition of secular knowledge, must find their place 
in that school where the Word of God is to be studied 
and taught for the intellectual and spiritual profit of 
old and young. 

There is an educational element in the Sunday school, 
and there must be organization, management, and in- 
struction after the manner of the day school, and these 
should be such as have been approved by the wisest and 
most experienced secular teachers. 

The Sunday school must differ from the secular 
school in several respects : in the necessary inf requency 
of recitations (one each week), the lack of authority 
which gives such power to the day school, the pre-emi- 



188 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

nence given to the moral and spiritual aims, and the rec- 
ognized dependence upon divine aid. The work is not 
so much that of developing nature as it is of promoting 
the gracious element in the soul and of educating the 
natural powers under the presence and influence of 
divine grace. The natural power and the natural order 
are not to be ignored. 

Illiterate men, who know absolutely nothing of nor- 
mal methods, have sometimes been eminently successful 
both in preaching and in teaching. But this is no 
argument against the observance of natural law in spir- 
itual work. Such men often follow the most thorough 
methods, although they know nothing of the laws in- 
volved. There is a sort of instinct in love which makes 
teachers. Common sense, a knowledge of human na- 
ture, and a heart full of love, will develop a teaching 
power which would, however, in every case be increased 
by a larger acquaintance with the principles and meth- 
ods of teaching. Love in the teacher of geology will 
give him a degree of power. But there is a wise way of 
teaching geology, and the best teachers are those who 
find it out and employ it. 

The religious objects of the Sunday school give its 
educational element peculiar advantage. It associates 
itself with the moral and spiritual elements, and thus 
tends to a symmetrical culture. It connects "the good, 
the true, and the beautiful/' Communicating knowl- 
edge, impressing the conscience, winning the affections, 
subduing and controlling the will, moulding the char- 
acter, and improving the life, it emphasizes the moral 
and spiritual, as being of vastly greater importance, and 
as being preliminary to all other culture. It furnishes 



GRADATION. 189 

the sublimest themes which the human mind can con- 
template. It furnishes the noblest inspirations which 
can possess a soul. It furnishes the choicest associa- 
tions in the pursuit of knowledge. The Sunday-school 
scholar comes in contact with refined and cultivated peo- 
ple. It comprises a longer period of life and study 
than the best secular school. One need never graduate 
from its associations and advantages. 

It is a lamentable fact that our modern Sunday 
school is too superficial. I believe it, on the whole, to 
be better now than ever, although in all stages of Sun- 
day-school history from the very beginning we might 
find examples of administrative and instructional 
method quite equal to the best that we have to-day. I 
believe that there is now a more widespread and general 
interest in the Sunday school as a school than ever be- 
fore ; but I repeat the fear just expressed, that the Sun- 
day-school instruction of to-day is too superficial. 

This is unfortunate, because never were our secular 
schools more attentive to method and to thoroughness of 
work than now, and the contrast between the school of 
the week day and the school of Sunday must work to the 
disadvantage of pupils in both institutions. The prob- 
lem before us is: How to increase and intensify the 
educational element in the Sunday school. 

There are several features in the educational system 
of the secular school which may be appropriated by the 
Sabbath school, such as the school system in organiza- 
tion, administration, instruction, examination and re- 
ports, the school curriculum, the school gradation, and 
the school spirit. 

All these elements must, of course, be modified by the 



190 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

peculiar ends, aims, and inspirations which belong to 
the Sabbath school. 

I call attention in this chapter to the, grading of the 
Sunday school. ~Now, sl school left to itself will grade 
itself after a fashion, and that not a very bad fashion. 
Age will draw the line first. The relative attainments 
of pupils will in a general way fit in with the gauge of 
the years. Thus the most unorganized school will have 
an infant department, a children's department, a young 
people's department, and an old folks' department. 
There you have it all done for you, by simply trusting 
to the natural instincts of people. You may stretch 
other lines, and build steps and platforms across these 
general sub-divisions, if you find that you can afford to 
do it. And soon you will have primary infant and sec- 
ondary infant, or intermediate; first children's grade 
and second children's grade; junior youths and senior 
youths ; then special-class normal for those who are pre- 
paring to teach ; special adult classes for those who want 
to study the Word conversationally, critically, and con- 
nectedly; and special lecture-class, as I have for years 
called it, for those who would like to receive instruction 
from a wise and agreeable lecturer, but who, for some 
reason, are unwilling to submit to the questioning of 
the lecturer in an ordinary Bible class. After this 
come in advanced week-evening classes in Biblical 
knowledge, historical, geographical, doctrinal, exeget- 
ical, with classes in church history, denominational 
church life, or other lines of religious study. In con- 
nection with the school may be organized special grades 
or departments for Saturday afternoons, or at other 
times, designed to teach the catechism of the church, 



GRADATION. 191 

juvenile lessons in Bible history and geography and 
church missionary work. 

The following plan I had the honor to submit, in 
1875, to the Brooklyn (N. Y.) Sunday-School Union 
Institute : 

1. The Primary or Infant. Made up of the non- 
reading pupils, usually averaging from five to eight 
years of age. 

2. The Intermediate or Elementary pupils. From 
eight to ten. 

3. The Third Grade or Junior. From ten to fifteen. 

4. The Senior Grade. This includes the older pupils, 
and embraces the lecture-class. 

5. The Normal Grade. Made up of two classes of 
pupils — the candidates for the teacher's office, who form 
a sort of preparatory normal class, and those who give 
attention especially to the study of methods and to 
actual practice in teaching. To this latter division of 
the normal department the regular teachers of the 
school should belong, at least until they have completed 
the course of study required. 

6. The Sixth or Permanent Grade. This will em- 
brace all who have passed the preceding grades, or who 
on account of good scholarship shall be elected by the 
proper officers or board of the school. This grade is 
designed to hold its members for life. It is to be the 
very highest department of the school, and may from 
time to time add to its list of members distinguished 
names who may thus contribute to the exaltation of the 
Sunday-school work and its increased influence, espe- 
cially over the ambitious and growing youth of the land. 

One of the most thoroughly organized schools in 



192 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

America is that of the late Hon. Lewis Miller, in Akron, 
Q., to which I have already alluded. In the account 
of his school by the teacher of his normal department, 
published in the Normal Class in 1875, I find the fol- 
lowing report of the system of gradation : 

"For a few minutes we will notice the different 
grades, having special permission to pass into the rooms, 
while ordinary visitors can only look in through the 
ample glass windows. In the infant department over 
a hundred bright faces greet us, varying from three to 
eight years. Active, restless, but sparkling, they are 
waiting the fulfilment of the Saviour's command, Teed 
My lambs.' There is no routine of recitation here. If 
you notice carefully the method of developing the lesson 
on one Sabbath, you may be sure the method will be 
varied on the next. The children are entertained and 
rested by singing, in which they can engage without 
disturbing the rest of the school. The theme for in- 
struction is the same as that of the entire school, 
only the milk of the Word is given by their judicious 
teacher. 

"Passing to the intermediate department, we find a 
grade of scholars from eight to twelve that are taught, 
in addition to the regular lesson, the main truths of the 
church catechism ; it being the superintendent's opinion 
that here the general doctrines of the church can be in- 
delibly impressed on the child's memory, although it 
may be years before they are fully understood. 

"The youths' department consists of two grades, one 
occupying the main room, where there are about eight 
pupils in a class, and the other occupying eight of the 
class-rooms, and varying in number from twelve to 



GEADATIOX. 193 

twenty. These divisions differ only in the age of the 
pupils and method of instruction. 

"The normal department, but recently organized, 
numbers fifty young ladies and gentlemen. They have 
commenced the course prepared by Dr. Vincent, and not 
only expect the diploma he awards to the successful 
student, but one that is to be specially engraved for the 
Akron school. After graduation, if there is no class 
ready for them to teach, they will pass into the adult 
Bible department, which is composed of three classes — 
one for young people, two for those more advanced in 
life, the fathers and mothers in Israel. 

"After forty minutes for the special work of the 
teachers has passed, a signal calls the attention to the 
desk. The doors are folded back, the few chairs are 
turned, and in from one to two minutes, without con- 
fusion, the school is ready for general exercises. These 
consist in questions and answers concerning the lesson; 
an appropriate blackboard exercise; reviews, remarks 
from visitors, pastor, or superintendent ; a song from 
the school, or from a class appointed for that purpose ; 
and, it may be, the reading of an obituary of some loved 
member taken later to the upper congregations. The 
secretary then reports the number of male and female 
pupils, respectively, in each department, and the num- 
ber of teachers, officers, and visitors. Doxology and 
benediction follow, and the large doors are thrown open, 
permitting the scholars to pass out with ease and quiet- 
ness. The average attendance for the past year was five 
hundred and five/' 

The article continues: "In conclusion, I will give a 
brief outline of the course of studv to which Mr. Miller 
13 



194 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

is trying to bring the school. All classes study the 
International Series. In the infant class special atten- 
tion is given to the story, the pupils remaining there 
four years. In the intermediate the historical parts are 
dwelt upon in connection with the catechism, pupils 
remaining three years. Four years are allotted to the 
first division of the youths' department, where the 
lesson with all its contexts is read. Three years for the 
second division, where various analyses of the lesson 
are produced. Then the pupils at the average age of 
eighteen years, having gone through the Bible twice, 
enter the normal class, where methods and outside evi- 
dences are taught. Then those not having classes pass 
into the Bible department, which is synthetical in its 
character, including all of the preceding in its search 
for the deep things of God. In all departments the 
practical truths of the lesson that tend to make the 
learner wise unto salvation are pressed home upon 
the consciences. 

"This course is still to a large extent theoretical, 
requiring time to bring it to perfection." 

In the early years of my ministry I worked in the 
Sabbath schools of my several churches, both as pastor 
and as assistant superintendent. In those years I devel- 
oped a scheme of gradation or classification which 
proved most successful in inciting children to study, in 
retaining the youth, and in attracting to the school and 
church the older people. I did not separate the school 
from the church, but made it simply a department of the 
church. The uniform lesson was almost invariably em- 
ployed, except in the infant class. I had in 1853 and 
1854 a regular graded church catechism department; in 



GRADATION. 195 

1855 and 1856 I added a Saturday afternoon class in 
Bible history and geography, which comprised five 
grades;* in 1857 to the catechism and Biblical history 
classes I added a thorough normal class, with studies in 
the theory and practice of Sunday-school teaching and 
in the Holy Scriptures. A popular Bible class on one 
evening of the week; courses of short lectures on early 
church history; probationers' classes, for the training 
of candidates for membership in the church; special 
sermons on church doctrines, and other devices and 
provisions, gave to the whole church an interest in Bible 
study, church history, denominational work, and espe- 
cially in the Sunday school as an organic part of the 
whole church life and order. Graduation from plane 
to plane was a necessity of growth ; and in such scheme 
of gradation I heartily believe to-day. 

It is easily possible to apply too rigidly a system of 
classification to a Sunday school. This is to be scrupu- 
lously avoided. One of the mightiest factors in our 
work is the personal influence of the teacher. Better 
fracture a stereotyped law of promotion than sever pupil 
and teacher in Sunday school, who are bound by cords 
of mutual confidence and affection. The system of the 
day school must not be allowed to mar the more delicate, 
sacred, and potent relationships of teacher and pupil in 
the church of God. 

It may interesting to read the following editorial 
report of a Jewish Sunday school, made by the author 
several years ago. It gives an illustration of the educa- 
tional feature : 

"On Fifth Avenue, ISTew York, in the immense and 

* See Appendix F. 



196 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

elegant Jewish Temple Emanu-el, a Sunday school is 
held every week, which deserves the title its founders 
gave it, 'The School for Religious Instruction.' 

"Of course it is not a Sunday school for Christian 
children. It is a Jewish institution. It has no Lord 
Jesus Christ in its creed nor in its worship, except as it 
teaches of the Messiah yet to come. It does not believe 
in the dispensation of the Holy Spirit in the sense in 
which w T e believe in it ; but in the system of instruction 
and of organization and administration which it has 
adopted we may learn many things to our profit. Per- 
haps, indeed, there is too much of the routine and 
method of the public school, and too little of the freedom 
and flexibility of the religious school, in which a gospel 
of life and hope and joy is taught ; but such as it is, the 
school of the Temple Emanu-el is worthy of a place 
among our noted and well-conducted schools. It has 
much that is worthy of admiration and of imitation. 

"We need not give a description of the elegant temple 
in which this school is held. Its basement is fitted up 
specially for school purposes, having a large number of 
class-rooms in w T hich, during the lesson hour, the classes 
may meet by themselves, free from all interruption. 
On the occasion of our visit the main hall was empty, 
all the classes being in their several rooms; and when, 
at the signal for the reassembling, the large lecture hall 
filled up, we w r ondered where the multitude could have 
been scattered. A visit through the building answered 
the query. 

"The school is under the control of a committee of 
gentlemen, the Rev. Dr. Gottheil, the rabbi in charge 
of the temple, being superintendent. This committee 



GRADATION. 197 

has a room handsomely furnished, in which the business 
meetings are held, and where, during the school exer- 
cises, several of the members may be found. Of course, 
it did seem a little singular to us to find three or four of 
these gentlemen smoking as they attended to the business 
of the school referred to them, answering questions of 
juvenile messengers, administering a word of rebuke to 
pupils who had been sent to them for discipline, etc. 
But gentlemen they were all in bearing and spirit. 
They seemed to have watched the Sunday-school work 
of their Christian neighbors, and to be somewhat inter- 
ested in the international scheme of lessons. They 
seemed to take pleasure in showing us about, and in 
explaining their plan of work. We visited several of 
the classes, which are much larger than ours usually are, 
and in which the methods of instruction adopted in the 
secular school prevail. In one class we found one of 
the committee examining the children in Old Testament 
history. He elicited from the little fellows the story 
of Lot. These little Hebrew learners seemed to be 
familiar with the entire story. The school had no uni- 
form lesson system. There are classes in Hebrew, in 
Biblical history, and in post-Biblical history. They 
also have classes in music. Some of the teachers are 
paid. 

"When the bell sounded for the first grade of scholars 
to enter the hall after the class recitations were over, the 
piano accompanied their entrance with a march. After 
the school had all assembled and perfect silence was 
secured, the rabbi, Dr. Gottheil, gave the school a very 
short lecture based upon an incident in the Bible record 
of Cain and Abel. It was interesting and profitable. 



198 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL, 

He illustrated the practical lesson drawn from it by a 
tradition or two from the Talmud. The singing of the 
school was fine. 

"An idea of the organization and practical working 
of this school may be gathered from the following rules 
and regulations: 1. For the observance of parents and 
pupils ; 2. For the observance of teachers. 

" 'I. Rules and Regulations. — Pupils and their 
Parents or Guardians. — 1. The regular school hours 
for religious instruction are from ten to twelve o'clock 
on Sunday morning ; for Hebrew, Sabbath and Sunday 
from nine to ten. 2. Applications for admission to the 
classes for religion will be received by the school com- 
mittee on the first Sunday in September, and in each 
succeeding month up to the last Sunday in December ; 
but admission to the Hebrew classes cannot be obtained 
after the last Sunday in November. Children under 
eight years of age, who are unable to read English with 
tolerable fluency, cannot be admitted. 3. It is of great 
importance that all pupils be in attendance from the 
opening day of the school, as the recitations commence 
at once, and are continued in regular succession without 
much chance for absentees to recover their losses and fill 
up gaps. As the time at our disposal is very limited, 
while the field which pupils have to traverse is extensive, 
the utmost economy in time is imperatively demanded. 
For the same reason, parents and guardians are ear- 
nestly requested not to detain the pupils from attend- 
ance on any but the most urgent causes, nor to prevent 
their punctual appearance in the class-room by employ- 
ing them for errands during part of the school hours. 4. 
Pupils are required to be in attendance at least ten min- 



GRADATION. 199 

utes before the commencement of the exercises, and to 
take their places quietly and decorously on entering. 
Loitering around the school premises while coming to 
or going from school is strictly prohibited. Pupils are 
particularly enjoined, while marching from room to 
room, not to break the line of march, nor to cause any 
noise by running, boisterous walking, stamping, etc. 
5. On entering the class-rooms, pupils will at once take 
the places assigned to them, and neither change nor 
leave them without permission, nor loiter in the hall 
when permitted to leave the room temporarily. Talk- 
ing and prompting during the instruction are strictly 
prohibited. 6. Gentleness and politeness of manners 
are expected in every pupil, to which must be added 
prompt obedience to teachers and school officers. Any 
continual want in these qualities will tell against the 
pupil's standing in the school, and may even lead to sus- 
pension or expulsion. 7. The pupils are further ex- 
pected to come well prepared for their school lessons by 
diligent study at home, and to pay close and undivided 
attention to instruction and recitation. 8. Lateness or 
absence from school shall be excused on account of sick- 
ness or other unavoidable circumstances, of which 
written notice to the teacher shall be given by parents or 
guardians. Otherwise marks of demerit will be entered 
into the roll-book against the absentee. In case of con- 
tinued neglectfulness, the pupil will be dismissed for 
the term by decree of the school committee. 9. The 
pupils will receive bi-monthly reports of their conduct 
and application for the inspection of parents or guar- 
dians, who are requested to sign the reports on presenta- 
tion and return them, by the pupils, to the teacher. The 



200 THE MODEKN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

return must be made within a fortnight. 10. The 
superintendent and committee wish it to be understood 
that they are determined to secure strict compliance 
with the foregoing or any other rules or regulations 
they may think proper to adopt for the successful con- 
duct of the schools, by all the means in their power; 
they appeal to parents and guardians for their co-opera- 
tion, trusting that they will impress those under their 
charge with the sacredness of the work at the school and 
the high import of the objects taught therein, for then 
only can they hope to achieve what they have earnestly 
at heart — a sound and effective religious training of our 
youth in the doctrines and principles of our ancestral 
religions ! 

" 'Confirmation Classes. — 1. Pupils intending to 
enter these classes must provide themselves with a 
written notice to that effect from parents or guardians, 
must have passed their thirteenth birthday, and must 
have reached the entrance standard of the first class. 2. 
They must be able to satisfy the minister as to their 
general standing in the school. Any serious shortcom- 
ing either in conduct or application, or want of earnest- 
ness and appreciation of the import of religious studies, 
incapacitates a pupil for admittance to the confirmation 
class. Should such deficiencies become apparent in the 
course of instruction, the pupil will not be permitted to 
receive the rite of confirmation during that year, but 
will have to continue the preparation for another school 
term. 3. The confirmation class of the girls' department 
will assemble on Tuesdays, and that of the boys' depart- 
ment on Thursdays, at four o'clock, to begin on the first 
week of January. 



GRADATION. 201 

" TX Rules and Regulations for the Observ- 
ance of Teachers. — 1. Teachers shall be at their post 
at least ten minutes before the opening of the classes or 
exercises. They shall keep their roll-books, and mark 
therein the attendance, deportment, and merits of pupils 
in accordance with the rules prescribed by the school 
committee ; they shall always have them written up care- 
fully and correctly, and keep them on their desks during 
school hours for the inspection of the school committee. 
Teachers of Hebrew classes will keep a separate roll- 
book for that branch of instruction. They shall take 
care of the contents of their desks, and of all other 
property and effects belonging to the class-room, and 
shall see to it that they are not damaged by the pupils. 

2. ~No pupil shall be enrolled into any class except upon 
the presentation of a check signed by the superintendent 
or a member of the school committee. These checks 
must be preserved by the teachers until the close of the 
school year; in case of removal of pupils to another 
class, their checks must be delivered to them and taken 
by them into the new class. The date and cause of 
transfer must be mentioned thereon. Upon entering the 
names of pupils on the roll-book, the teacher will ar- 
range them in alphabetical order ; he will write out each 
name in full, and be careful that it is properly spelled. 

3. Whenever a pupil is removed from any class, or 
leaves the school entirely, the teacher shall make a 
memorandum thereof on his roll-book, and mention it 
in his general report to the school committee. 4. The 
following reports shall be prepared by the respective 
teachers: a. Absentee Reports. — Whenever a pupil 
shall have been absent for two successive weeks without 



202 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

a satisfactory excuse, the teacher shall make an entry 
thereof upon one of the absentee blanks provided for 
that purpose, and send it to the committee-room. b. Bi- 
monthly Reports. — To be sent to parents or guar- 
dians for examination and signature. These reports 
shall be prepared at the end of every second month, in 
accordance with the established rules of the school. 
c. The General Report. — This report shall be pre- 
pared for the use of the School Board at the end of 
each month, and contain a statement of the total marks 
attained by each pupil during the past month. These 
reports shall be prepared regularly at the specified time, 
and in manner and form as prescribed by the School 
Board ; they shall be prepared separately for the Hebrew 
and for the religious classes, except the bi-monthly re- 
port to parents, which the pupils, after having received 
from their teacher in the religious class, and before 
taking home, shall be required to submit to the teacher 
of their Hebrew class, who shall insert therein their 
standing in that branch. 5. A teacher being absent 
from his post without satisfactory excuse, will lose one 
week's salary for every such absence. 6. When the 
pupils are assembled in the lecture-room, they are under 
the direction of the superintendent or his substitute. 
The teachers are expected to remain with their respec- 
tive classes, and to assist in maintaining quiet, order, 
and prompt attention to the signals given from the su- 
perintendent's desk. 7. When in their respective class- 
rooms, the pupils are under the sole and entire control 
of the teacher ; he alone is then responsible for the dis- 
cipline. 8. The means in the power of the teacher for 
the maintenance of discipline are: (1) admonition; (2) 



GRADATION. 203 

marks and tasks; (3) complaint to the school commit- 
tee. 9. In case earnest and repeated admonition prove 
ineffective, the teacher punishes misconduct by taking 
off marks of merit if there are any; and if not, by re- 
cording demerits. He may also impose tasks in writ- 
ing. Of such tasks a note is to be made in the last 
column of the roll-book. 10. Should all these means 
prove ineffective, the teacher will then send the refrac- 
tory pupil to the committee, with a statement of his 
complaint in writing (on the forms provided for such a 
case), and await the action of the same. 11. The fore- 
going rules and regulations are laid down for teachers 
of Hebrew as well as those of religious classes; their 
strict and faithful execution is necessary to the proper 
management of the school. A violation of, or non-com- 
pliance with, any one of them will be regarded as a 
breach of the contract existing between the school com- 
mittee and the teacher. By order of the School Board.' . 
"We present this account of a Jewish Sunday school. 
It is especially interesting, as it shows the close con- 
nection between the school and the family, and reminds 
us of the strictness with which the Jews of all ages have 
trained their children in their ancestral faith. Our 
memories of the Sunday spent in Emanu-el are very 
delightful, and our prayer, is that this most excellent 
school may continue to prosper, and its members come 
one day with us to see Him who is our King — the Lord 
Jesus Christ — the end of all the law and of all the 
ceremonies which the devout Jews of all ages have held 
so dear." 



204 THE MODERN" SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



CHAPTEE XIII. 

THE PRIMARY CLASS. 

The primary teacher's work is delicate and impor- 
tant. There are, however, extravagant statements made 
concerning the power of infant training, based upon 
certain errors to which I call attention. All the possi- 
bilities of life are not wrapped up in infancy. Early 
impressions have great power, but failure in childhood 
is not necessarily failure for all time. There is a differ- 
ence between physical breakage and moral deflection. 
The delicate vase, once shattered, can never be restored, 
but a plant misdirected or injured may yet grow into 
strength and beauty. There is a persistency of cor- 
rective power in the life-force. There is a boundless- 
ness of grace in the infinite heart of God. There is a 
vigilant and tender providence by which God leads souls 
through the years, out of sin into virtue. He respects 
freedom, and teaches as souls will receive teaching. It 
sometimes seems to require a lifetime to lead a soul 
into the way and the peace of the Lord. The final re- 
sults of the divine treatment may not be achieved until 
heads are silvered with age. Time is an important 
element in soul-guidance and culture. And it is possi- 
ble to neutralize early errors — at least to a great extent. 
But it is better not to err. 

The work of grace depends upon personal acceptance. 
You are not working among laws of physical dynamics. 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 205 

You cannot always be sure how or when results will be 
secured, or whether certain results will be reached at all. 
You cannot peer into the mysteries of divine control or 
of human volition. A child trained up well will become 
an adult well trained. "Train," and "train up" — all 
the way up. Begin at the beginning and keep at it all 
the way "up." There is a law of success in spiritual 
training, but it is for us to heed the practical side of the 
statement and "train" the candidate, always remember- 
ing the force of "train up/' and not contenting ourselves 
with "early training" alone, as though that were all. 

It is the principal work of the primary-class teacher 
to teach the religion of Jesus Christ to his pupils, and 
that with a good practical tone and application. The 
child lives in the world of sense. Its eyes are open to 
the ten thousand objects around it. This fact may 
hinder the work of religious teaching. It lives under 
the dominion and in the world of the imagination. It. 
glorifies everything on which it looks or of which it has 
heard. It takes to the world of fairy-life as a bird does 
to the air. It is always ready for a story. It delights 
in parables. The infant pupil lives in a world of un- 
questioning faith. It believes all that it hears. The 
most improbable and absurd statement even by a 
stranger is received with perfect faith. The infant 
pupil has a most retentive memory. The objects it sees, 
the stories it hears, the statements it once believes, all 
remain in its soul as so many vivid pictures. All these 
capacities and powers render the work of the religious 
teaching of infants extremely delicate and difficult. 

We must not depend upon memory deposits. Con- 
science and will and affections may be corrupted, though 



206 THE MODEEN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

the memory be full of catechism and Scripture and sacred 
hymns. Intellectual training is of little value. If secured 
at the expense of moral culture, it is worse than worthless. 

We must not depend upon emotions. Fear and 
sympathy and the delights of aesthetic excitement have 
their place in the religious training of children, but may 
exist without moral sensitiveness or strength of purpose. 

As primary teachers, work by faith. Mysteries cloud 
the realm in which we serve. They surround God's 
purposes and operations, and man's convictions and 
decisions. Learn how to teach all sides of the soul 
according to the divine order, and then trust God. 
Treat it not merely as a curious, excitable, craving little 
intellect, but remember that the conscience and the 
affections of a child are responsive to law quite as 
early as is his intellect to the statements of fact and 
principles. The child's love, like a fragile tendril, 
seeks something it may cling to. Its early sorrows need 
comfort. Its early sins need pardon. It is the teacher's 
work to lift up law before the infant conscience, to hold 
the Lord Jesus within reach of his longing love, and to 
soothe his early sorrows with heavenly balm. The 
infant-class work is "work for souls" as really as is 
that of the pulpits. The truth as it is in Jesus is the 
food wherewith you are to "feed the lambs." The 
"paths of righteousness" are the paths into which you 
are to lead their feet. 

The teacher of the primary class must aid his pupils 
in cultivating the spirit and in performing the acts of 
devotion. Children's prayers reach the ear of God, and 
if offered in true faith, receive a prompt reply. Every 
such prayer, by its reflex influence, strengthens and 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 207 

exalts the child's character. This result is the more 
marked with infancy because of its quick susceptibility. 
Then, these early impressions and convictions remain 
through the whole of life. How the mountain, that 
our eyes gazed upon in childhood, was magnified and 
glorified in our thought ! We return in mature life 
and look upon the mountain again, but with somewhat 
of disappointment. It is not as vast as we thought. 
The earliest views we get of God should be so clear 
and strong that the influence of them might go with us 
through life. He will never disappoint us. The moun- 
tain to our manhood's vision may be less lofty than that 
our child-eyes wondered at; but the infinite God will 
ever be a wonder and a glory, and no maturity or expan- 
sion of intellect will ever outgrow a true thought con- 
cerning Him. Therefore the utmost care should be 
used to make the right impressions upon even little 
children when they attempt to pray. The devotions 
of the infant class should be full of reverence and silent 
awe, and then of gratitude and gladness. They should 
not be merely performed. They should not consist of 
mere ritual or recitation. Every prayer and every song 
should be preceded by preparatory explanations and 
reflections and summonings of the children's thought, 
reverence, and love, as for a holy service, so that they 
might wait for God's answer, and go away saying, as 
did one little darling, "I think I shall do right this 
week, for God's going to do it for me. I asked Him." 
It is important that the prayers of an infant class 
be not a playing at prayer. Quiet, thoughtfulness, the 
closed eyes, should accompany the brief, simple, and 
direct petition of the teacher. One cannot be too careful 



208 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

how he leads the minds of little children in the formal 
worship of God. 

Concerning the infant-class room I may say that one 
may admire the setting of a diamond without failing to 
appreciate the gem itself. The gospel yon teach will 
not lose its charm or power by brightness, freshness, 
comfort and beauty in the room where you teach it. 
Convenient seats, pleasant carpets, soft cushions, fresh 
air, frescoed walls, floral decorations, stained-glass win- 
dows, mottoes and pictures on the walls, delight the little 
ones, and will interest them in you and the gospel you 
bear to them. "Father Gardner," in Washington, 
D. C, has rare taste in the adornment of his infant-class 
room. He is a very old man, but a very young old man. 
He has crossed the eighties, and although some snow- 
flakes have rested on his brow, his heart is buoyant and 
sprightly and gladsome as it could possibly have been 
sixty or seventy years ago. In his infant-class hall canary 
birds sing in their cages, and bouquets in beautiful vases 
throw their fragrance and radiance over the room. 

If the birds sing when he talks, or in any way dis- 
turbs the children in their lessons, he has a way of 
covering up the cages, and the little warblers are "as 
still as church mice." But the birds and the flowers 
help the old man wonderfully. How the little members 
of that class look forward all the week to their Sunday 
school, with its birds and blossoms, and blessed old 
teacher of the grey hair and glad face ! To some of 
them it is the only oasis in the week's journey ; to all it 
is an Elim.* Although you have not a large supply of 

* Since these words were written, our dear old friend has gone to the better 
land. 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 209 

money, you may do something in this direction, for 
water is free, and whitewash cheap, and flowers — do 
they not grow for all ? Wreaths and festoons of ever- 
greens may be better than frescoes. In almost every 
community there is some one with artistic skill enough 
to prepare on plain paper beautiful mottoes to hang on 
the wall, and illustrative designs to use in teaching. 

The little fellow who comes to your beautiful class- 
room has a physical nature. He is in the body, and a 
very busy, restless, troublesome little body it is. There- 
fore don't require him to hang his feet from a high 
bench, or "sit still" under fear of your wrath, until 
the schoolroom becomes a prison, and your law like 
fetters to him. Don't let his physical discomforts so 
divert attention from your teaching that he really does 
not know what you are talking about. Give the little 
lungs fresh air and plenty of it, and the little limbs 
ample room. Systematize the "fidgets" once in a while 
into a pleasant gymnastic exercise of some sort. Let 
the class fold arms, rise and sit, twirl fingers, and turn 
bodies, march and countermarch, if you please, just as 
they do in every well-regulated secular infant school. 
It seems to me I could usually in some way connect 
the facts of the lesson with these movements, so as to 
make even the relaxation of the class a medium of 
instruction in the lesson for the day. Thus, in the 
lesson about Jesus at twelve years, the seventy miles 
from Nazareth to Jerusalem, and the twelve years, and 
the eight days of the feast, and the third day, were all 
used by one teacher as a guide for a sort of gymnastic 
exercise in the class — the children rising and sitting 
three times, counting eight, striking their hands twelve 
14 



210 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

times, and finally raising both hands seven times to 
show how "many miles it was to Jerusalem from 
Nazareth." This exercise was used merely to rest the 
weary little fellows, but it incidentally gave them sev- 
eral definite ideas about time and distance as suggested 
by the lesson for the day. 

As to the organization of the class I need say but 
little. There should be one responsible teacher — the 
best teacher in the church, wise, firm, gentle, patient, 
and full of tact. She (such a teacher is likely to be a 
woman ; there are few "Father Gardners") will have the 
infant class subdivided into small classes under assistant 
teachers, or she will teach them all herself by the simul- 
taneous method. Whichever plan she thinks best will 
be best for her. I fully approve of Mrs. Knox's admir- 
able plan of class subdivisions, but I know human 
nature too well, and too much respect the individuality 
of the teacher, to ask her to adopt a plan which she does 
not see to be the wisest. 

Whatever the method, the exercises of the class 
should be varied. Elastic as rubber balls, juvenile 
brains leap from topic to topic with marvelous rapidity. 
It is difficult to hold them for any considerable length of 
time to one subject. This is the reason that repetition 
is so indispensable; that line must be given upon line, 
and precept upon precept. And for this reason you 
must concentrate your efforts so as to make at least one 
deep and strong impression at each session of the class. 
This can only be accomplished by variety in the methods 
we employ. The one topic for the day must be held up 
in the prayer, set forth in the songs, illustrated on the 
board by the picture and story, recalled by questions, 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 211 

reviewed and re-reviewed with such a diversity of de- 
vices, that the attention of the restless pupil shall be 
steadily held to this one truth. For this reason I like 
the class method employed by Mrs. Knox. The change 
from class recitation to that of the simultaneous review 
secures both variety and thoroughness. 

In teaching little people we must use objects that 
appeal to the sight. The eye receives more knowledge, 
and that more readily, than the ear. Hence eye-teach- 
ing is more effective than any other. You may discourse 
from the pulpit with the eloquence of a Chrysostom, but 
if the sexton should carry his taper about to light the 
gas-burners all your oratory will go for nothing. That 
little tongue of flame will win the attention of your 
audience in spite of you. Hence in teaching children, 
who have still less power of self -direction than adults, so 
far as attention is concerned, you must use objects, or 
draw word-pictures, or tell stories and parables, that by 
putting knowledge in concrete forms you may win and 
retain the attention of your pupils. Hence, in the 
infant class especially, appeal to the eye in your teach- 
ings. A leaf, a grain of wheat, a flower, a dried branch, 
an apple, a toy, a lamp, a cane, a pebble, a stuffed bird, 
a piece of white paper, a blotted page, a torn book, a 
grain of sand, a globe — how many things there are in 
this world from which lessons may be drawn or by 
which they may be illustrated ! Can you find an object 
in nature that does not hold in it somewhere and some- 
how a truth proper to be taught to your pupils ? Es- 
pecially keep your mind full of Scripture incidents. 
Bible stories and apt illustrations from nature should 
linger on the teacher's tongue, ready for use at bidding. 



212 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Little learners like amazingly the "likes" of a true 
teacher's discourse. 

In appealing to the eye we must exoite a high degree 
of curiosity in the child's mind. 

An eminent educator says, "Curiosity is the parent 
of attention." The teacher who allows the pictures he 
would use in teaching to hang for weeks and months on 
the wall before the child's eye, must not wonder that the 
pupil shows but little interest when the picture is 
brought down to be exhibited to the class, or form a text 
for the day's lesson. Have not all the children seen it 
for months ? Did they not "eat it all up" with their 
eyes, as one little fellow expressed it, the first day they 
came into the room where it hung ? The teacher should 
learn to conceal as well as to reveal. One of my corre- 
spondents suggested the following plan for teaching a 
Biblical alphabet to his infant class. One of its princi- 
pal advantages is in the hiding and gradual unfolding 
of its contents. He says, "On a long roll of coarse 
paper the other day I painted (with an ordinary store 
marking-brush) several letters, very large and bold. 
Just above each great letter I placed two or more words 
of which it is the initial. The roll is hung on a regular 
window-shade roller, so that I can pull it up or down. 
The 'Edmond Song Roll' would be better, but as I 
cannot afford that, I resort to the shade fixture. Each 
letter stands for two or more Bible characters, whose 
names in smaller letters are spelled out in full above it. 
While only the great letter appears, the scholars recall 
the names of persons beginning with that letter. As the 
lesson roll comes down these names are also seen. Then 
comes the next letter, then the names of which it is the 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 



213 



initial, etc., etc. Thus I excite curiosity, secure fre- 
quent repetition, and go over a great deal of Bible his- 
tory every Sunday which does not interfere with our 
regular lesson. This is the way the roll appears when 
I first lower it : 



'Then, pulling it down a little further, we have : 



ABRAM. 
ABEL. 
ADAM. 



A 



"You see that the large letter conies first into sight. 
Then the scholars try and recall the names that are to 
follow. When these finally appear they tell me all they 
know about each. This is the way the roll looked the 
first Sunday after a lesson : 



D 



CORNELIUS. 

CANAAN. 
CAIN. 



BALAAM. 

BAAL. 

BENJAMIN. 



B 



ABRAM. 
ABEL. 

ADAM. 



214 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

The infant-class cabinet is another help in this 
direction. This is a closet-box, or case, for preserving 
the pictures and other objects to be used in teaching. 
The key is in the hands of the teacher. ISTo eye but the 
teacher's ever looks into it. 'No hand but his ever enters 
it. New pictures, etc., are placed into the cabinet only 
in the absence of the class. The walls of the room may 
be adorned with a few pictures, but not with those to 
be used in teaching. These are hidden until needed for 
use in the class. 

Some of the advantages of this little appliance are 
these : 

1. The objects are preserved from dust and damage. 

2. They do not become so familiar as to lose their 
power. 

3. The opening of the cabinet excites curiosity. The 
teacher's key is worth more than a bell. 

4. It arrests attention. Try an experiment. Take 
down a picture from the wall where it has been hanging 
for six months, or take it from a box or closet. See 
what indifference during the one and what intense in- 
terest during the other performance. 

5. Old lessons may be repeated and old pictures 
exhibited again with no diminution of interest. 

The blackboard is invaluable for the same reasons. 
The creation before the eyes of a class of some line, 
diagram, letter, or picture always holds them spell- 
bound. The teacher can conceal, and slowly or sud- 
denly reveal, as he wills, the lesson he is giving. The 
little ones forget everything else as they watch the won- 
der-working crayon, and connect the teacher's words 
with the sketches wrought by his hand on the board. 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 215 

The sexton's taper will be less likely to divert attention 
while this exercise is going on. 

There is a tendency to crowd the Bible itself out of 
the infant schoolroom by the numerous adaptations, 
monosyllabic, allegorical, or pictorial, of its teachings to 
the juvenile capacity. The teacher too often fails to 
distinguish between the Bible incidents he narrates and 
the secular stories and parables which he gives his 
pupils. Whatever fact or lesson from God's Word is 
given to the class should be read in their hearing from 
the open Bible. Use pictures, blackboard objects, 
ellipses, questions, familiar illustrations, and whatso- 
ever else may contribute to the clear statement of Bible 
truth, but before you leave the subject give the simple 
"Word of God" account of it. Therefore every infant- 
class room should contain a neat Bible stand, and on it 
a large copy of the Holy Scriptures. Let every lesson 
that is drawn directly from the Bible be given to the 
scholars, sooner or later, in each recitation, from the 
Bible itself: It is well to bring up children to know 
that even in God's Word, that great volume that by its 
size almost repels the little student, there are plain sen- 
tences and charming stories and precious lessons that 
even infancy can understand and enjoy. 

Mothers are worth more than infant-class teachers, 
and home is worth more than school. Therefore the 
primary teacher should help mother to teach all through 
the week the lessons which are given in the class on 
Sunday. And the teacher must try in some way to 
touch the child's home every day of the week. 

The plan of having a lesson for the infant scholar to 
carry home is good. It induces mother and father, and 



216 THE MODERN" SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

older brothers and sisters, to help the "pet" study. If 
the lesson can be in pictorial form it will be all the 
better. The picture wins the little one; the little one 
wins the larger, and thus little and large study a lesson 
at home during the week. This supposes that a uniform 
lesson is used in the school, a plan now accepted and 
employed by all schools that claim to be thoroughly 
organized and efficient. 

The teacher must come in contact with the scholars 
as frequently as possible. The casual meeting on the 
street should be hailed as an opportunity for tightening 
the bonds of mutual affection, recalling the lessons of 
the last Sabbath, and reminding the pupil of the obli- 
gations for the next. The occasional "pastoral call" of 
the teacher at the home of the scholar will win the 
parents, secure their co-operation, and enable the teacher 
to understand the home surroundings of his scholars, 
and to adapt his instructions thereto. 

The scholars may be used as "carrier doves" from 
the school to the family for the transmission of practical 
tracts, books, and other appeals in behalf of Christ and 
His cause, by which the parental confidence may be in- 
creased, and the religious influence of home strength- 
ened. Practical religion, taught at school, and con- 
nected by the teacher with home scenes and experience, 
will do a great deal toward recalling, through the week, 
the instructions of the Sabbath. 

Best of all is the provision which enables the mothers 
to sit on a slightly elevated gallery in the infant-class 
room every Sabbath and watch the teachers of their 
little ones as they give lessons and train children, show- 
ing mothers what is to be done at home and how it is to 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 217 

be done. This is the demand in Sunday-school work 
to-day — the "home department." This is the demand 
in Sunday-school architecture — the mothers' gallery in 
the primary-class room. Thus the primary class be- 
comes the true home extension work, and is at the same 
time the true church extension society. 

One question more I must answer: "Shall we teach 
the International Lessons in the infant class ?" I 
answer promptly, Yes, but not these alone. Teach the 
regular lesson for the day — always. Teach it for the 
sake of keeping the golden text in the home the children 
come from ; for the sake of interesting brother and sis- 
ter, of the more advanced classes, as well as father and 
mother, in the lessons which the very little ones ought to 
know something about ; for the sake of the large pictures 
on blackboard and "leaf cluster" sheets, and of tiny pic- 
tures—all about the current lesson — in the little peo- 
ple's papers. This unity, that embraces the infant class, 
is as good for the older people at home as for the little 
"tots," and it is lost when the International Lesson 
drops out of the primary room. 

There is one rule of common sense which teachers of 
infant classes must observe. While every Sunday, in 
addition to the regular lesson, there must be class-drills 
in reciting texts, hymns, and catechism, on those days 
when the current lessons are a little more difficult and 
less adapted to infants, spend less time on them and 
more time on the memory drills. This rule will solve 
every problem in connection with the primary class and 
the International Lesson. 

Such is the dignity of the infant-class teacher's work. 
It has to do with mere babes ; but babes are the begin- 



218 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

nings of all that is great in human character and 
achievement. The princes of our race, the philosophers 
and poets and preachers — the glorious saints of four 
thousand years and more in heaven — these all began as 
babes on earth. The "Alpha and Omega" Himself, 
who is the "Prince of the kings of the earth/' "the King 
of kings and Lord or lords/' who "has the keys of hell 
and of death/' was once the babe of Bethlehem. When 
Isaiah announced His incarnation, he proclaimed, "Be- 
hold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and His 
arm shall rule for Him : behold, His reward is with 
Him, and His work before Him." What shall this 
"strong hand" and ruling "arm" do when He comes ? 
What is "the work before Him ?" Shall He show forth 
His power by uprooting the mountains, emptying the 
oceans, or summoning new stars into the void of space ? 
The prophet himself answers : "He shall feed His flock 
like a shepherd: lie shall gather the lambs with His 
arm, and carry them in His bosom/' This prophecy 
was fulfilled. We find Jesus on the earth, His "strong 
hand" outstretched to the children of His times, His 
ruling "arm" folding them to His bosom, and His sweet, 
clear voice, that still sounds among the centuries, say- 
ing, "Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come 
unto Me." 

A work that deals with the childhood thus sanctified 
and exalted by the Saviour's word and touch, a work 
that imitates such a perfect example, a work that 
handles such immortal possibilities, must indeed be one 
of infinite importance and dignity. The teacher should 
fill his heart with this truth. 

The teacher's work being so important, he cannot 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 219 

expect to do it well without careful preparation every 
week. 

It is not an easy thing to hold the attention of 
children. In order to do it the lesson must be thoroughly 
inwrought into the teacher's mind. He must have his 
heart full of it. lie must look at it from a child's view- 
point. He must know what to omit, and how to "put" 
what he has selected as appropriate to be taught; and 
above all, how to excite the thought, conscience, and 
heart of each pupil by the lesson. This requires patient, 
plodding, prayerful preparation. From Sabbath to 
Sabbath he must keep thinking, planning, experiment- 
ing, and pleading with God with reference to this great 
and holy work. 

To another practical and important thought I call at- 
tention : Old people, who have outgrown the experience 
of childhood, are too apt to forget its trials and vexa- 
tions. We men with great boots on forget that the peb- 
bles in the morning pathway of life are very painful to 
the tender little feet that travel there. So we march on, 
dragging our children with us, unmindful of their sor- 
rows, chiding their tears, and sarcastically bidding them 
"not to be babies/' Alas ! we forget we too were 
"babies" once, with tender feet and tearful eyes. God 
make us men more mindful of our own early miseries, 
that we may more truly sympathize with the trials of 
our children! 

The true infant-class teacher is full of tenderness. 
He rules by love rather than by law. Loving ardently, 
he places himself frequently in the spheres where his 
scholars live, feels what they feel, and, bringing his 
larger experience and maturer judgment to his aid, 



220 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

gives the little ones comfort where the less discriminat- 
ing and less generous nature would administer chiding. 
So they come to him with their sorrows, knowing that 
he has sympathy for them. His smiles light up their 
tears. His prayers are always ready to go up to God 
for their welfare, and they think of him as a true and 
constant friend. A writer in the Rhode Island School- 
master thus expresses the policy and relation to his 
pupils of such a teacher: 

"The twig is so easily bended, 

I have banished the rule and the rod ; 
I have taught them the goodness of kindness — 
They have taught me the goodness of God. 

"My heart is a dungeon of darkness, 

Where I shut them for breaking a rule ; 
My frown is sufficient correction ; 
My love is the law of the school. 

"When the lessons of life are all ended, 

And death says, 'The school is dismissed,' 
May the little ones gather around me, 
To bid me 'good-night,' and be kissed." 

Several years ago, to meet the demands and remove 
the difficulties of country teachers, I wrote the follow- 
ing, which may be of service to other teachers : 

"I often hear teachers in country places complain 
that they do not enjoy the advantages of city teachers, 
and justify themselves for not attempting much in view 
of these disadvantages. Here are some words from a 
country teacher, whether myth or maiden matters not, 
so that the words spoken are sound words. It is my 
story of 'Mnette, the Country Teacher/ told in her own 
wav : 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 221 

"1. Her Difficulties. — 'Think of rny lot; in a 
small country church, a class of thirty infants, no 
infant-class room, no singing possible in the class, no 
carpets, no frescoed walls, no gallery sittings, no silver 
bell, no — well, never mind, what a delightful class I 
have ! And what delightful times I have in my class V 

"2. Her Programme. — '(1.) At the opening of the 
school we all go to the front seats. Superintendent 
always notices us, and says a kind word to his "little 
lambkins. " 

" '(2.) After the teachers' roll-call we go into the 
back part of the church, where we need not interrupt 
others. Superintendent often says as we march down, 
"There goes the best part of my flock. Don't let any- 
body disturb them." 

" '(3.) When we are all in our places, and quiet as 
"church mice," I raise both my arms without speaking 
a word. The scholars do the same. I fold my arms.. 
They fold theirs. 

" '(4.) Then in a whisper we all say — 

1. 2. 

" Softly whisper, " Hush ! and listen ! 

Softly speak, Do not play ; 

Little children, Hear what teacher 

Still and meek. Has to say. 

3. 4. 

" When from sin " When our hearts 

W^e turn away, To Jesus rise, 

When we sing, Jesus answers 

And when we pray, From the skies." 

" '(5.) I tell them in low tones the story of the lesson 
for the day, and drill them on the "Golden Text." We 
use the Picture and Bold-Text helps, the International 



222 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Lessons. Their answers are in concert, distinct, low, 
and sweet. How plainly one can be heard, even in a 
low tone, when the words are clearly spoken ! 

" '(6.) Of course I have a blackboard. I asked the 
parents of my scholars for money, and they gave me all 
I wanted. Matt. Merrill, our librarian, is a carpenter, 
and a clever fellow. He made a frame for the board, 
which stands in front of my class. The superintendent 
says it is almost as good as a partition between my class 
and the school. 

" '(7.) Once a month I meet the children at a private 
house to sing. We can sing ten different tunes now, 
although we do not sing in the class at all. Superin- 
tendent often selects opening and closing songs that we 
know/ 

"3. Her Blackboard Lessons. — 'Somebody wrote 
me the other day to ask this question : "How do you get 
up your blackboard exercises ?" I answered the ques- 
tion by post, but I kept a copy for you. Here it is : 

"'(1.) I don't use the blackboard for the sake of 
using it. I don't contract and weaken spiritual truth 
by putting it into chalk lines and limitation. Think of 
trying to crayonize "Eternity I" 

" '(2.) I don't follow the published "Blackboard Ex- 
ercises" of the magazines. I can't. It's like David 
trying to use Saul's armor. Every mind, if it really 
knows a subject and loves to teach it, has its own way of 
"putting" a lesson. The blackboard exercise, to have 
any force in it, must be the product of the individual 
who teaches the specific lesson. Perhaps this is putting 
it too strongly; but I can no more teach other people's 
blackboard exercises than I can wear their hats and 



THE PRIMARY CLASS. 223 

shoes, or (to be a little more graceful in my way of say- 
ing it) adopt their style of speech or composition. 

" '(3.) When I do get up a blackboard lesson I first 
of all take a slate and somebody's youngster, and try 
(during the week, of course) to teach the Sunday's les- 
son to that youngster, using the slate only when I can 
the better make him comprehend the story or subject. 
The result is, I put nothing on the slate but what is 
needed, and although the "Institute Blackboardists" 
might see no artistic merit in my slate-marks, I see 
unity in them, and my scholar understands the lesson 
all the better for it. 

" '1 don't like the idea of getting up sermons as ser- 
mons, or lessons as lessons. Think of somebody writing 
a letter to his mother or sweetheart, following precisely 
"The Letter-Writer's own Book." If a man loves he 
can find words of his own. If a man keeps God's grace 
in his heart and has God's gospel in his brain, he will 
not "get up" artistic or "model" sermons, nor perhaps 
think of his productions as sermons at all. Yet with 
such love what genuine sermons he will preach ! In 
teaching it is all the same. Love ! Love ! LOVE ! 
Isn't this the main thing? And won't this incite to 
diligence, quicken the intellect, insure spontaneity, sug- 
gest methods, and all that !' . 

"4. A Practical Plajst. — 'I find the habit of talk- 
ing to children every day is my greatest help. I have 
three little brothers. Our next neighbor has two little 
girls and a boy, so I practice on these almost every day. 
And they enjoy it. Telling the same story over three or 
four times a week, watching and avoiding the words our 
juveniles don't understand, observing the questions and 



224 THE MODEEN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

statements which take the strongest hold on thein, I get 
the whole subject ready by Sabbath, and know exactly 
how to rivet the attention of my whole class. And I do 
enjoy it so much ! "It's the girl's meat and drink/' rny 
old grandmother says. If I dare venture one word of 
advice to my good sister from Bethlehem it will be — 
Every day talk with the children about the lesson for 
the next Sabbath.' " 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 225 



CHAPTEE XIV. 

THE SENIOR CLASSES. 

There are several classes of senior pupils. There are 
the full-grown, fully occupied, active, vigorous men and 
women, whose energies are given for six days to the 
pursuits of the world. They need Bible study. They 
need it "for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for in- 
struction in righteousness." One is never too old to 
study God's Word. Adults have certain advantages 
over children in Bible study : they are more fond of the- 
ological themes; are more interested in close and ex- 
haustive study; have deeper insight into ethical and 
doctrinal subjects ; have larger experience in matters of 
religious need, longing, and life, and they are likely to 
co-operate more intelligently and cordially in the teach- 
ing work. The man may be easily attracted and held. 
His activities, his experiences in life, the ability he 
possesses to concentrate his attention — all these elements 
render him helpful to the teacher. He may be captious, 
he may be disposed to go to the bottom of things, he may 
ask the teacher some very puzzling questions, but with 
all these he thinks. He loves to see the reason of things. 
He delights in mental effort. 

There is also an interesting section of the Sunday 
school composed of girls and boys who are really inter- 
ested in the general exercises and class instructions of 
the school. They love order. They love knowledge. 
15 



226 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

They love music. They love the society of the school. 
They have enthusiasm in school life and work. It is 
easy to govern them. It is easy to teach them. It is 
easy to love them. These we may call the co-operative 
pupils. They respond to the teacher's effort. They 
sustain every interest of the school. 

There is another class of so-called senior pupils, who 
give more anxiety and cause more annoyance than all 
the other scholars. They are "the most troublesome 
of all." 

The restless, wide-awake, active, intense, ingenious, 
irrepressible boy, full to the overflow of the very essence 
of fun, is not the "most troublesome of all" the pupils 
we teach in Sunday school, for he may be held with the 
greatest ease by an ingenious teacher. All he needs is to 
be interested, and very simple things will do that. Ex- 
cite his curiosity, utilize his activity, and reward his 
attention, then the problem in his case is easily enough 
solved. 

The most troublesome of all the pupils we are re- 
quired to manage in the Sunday school is the boy who is 
just beyond boyhood and yet can scarcely be regarded as 
a man; whose exact counterpart is the girl who is just 
beyond girlhood and yet can scarcely be regarded as a 
woman. 

Let me consider some of the peculiarities of this age. 
In them we shall find some excuse for the worst features 
of young people who are in it, and perhaps some aid in 
the direction and instruction which as Sunday-school 
teachers we are called upon to give. These young peo- 
ple are just leaving the age of artlessness and simplicity, 
which are characteristic of childhood; they have come 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 227 

into the age of awkwardness and self-consciousness. 
Their attention and tastes are wholly diverted from the 
serious and earnest things of life, and they have no 
interest in so-called religious matters. This world is 
fascinating to them ; they see everything through a rose- 
colored medium. A false view of themselves and of the 
worth of the world gives them an overweening sense of 
their own importance. Their whole tone will, of neces- 
sity, be frivolous. Fun and frolic and fashion and folly 
make up the whole of life, except where a wise parental 
discipline prevents it. They are likely to regard insub- 
ordination as a particularly bright thing, and are fond 
of showing disregard of all authority. They lack self- 
government. To rule one's self is a lesson which it takes 
years to learn. They have not yet learned it. The 
dictates of sound judgment and of good taste are little 
heeded. The will is swept this way and that by impulse 
and passion. In many cases these young people are un- 
employed much of the time. Indolence aggravates every 
peculiar difficulty in their case which we have consid- 
ered. We must also remember that the majority of 
people do not sufficiently appreciate the peculiar em- 
barrassments of such young people. They ridicule them 
unsparingly ; if they have the authority they scold them. 
It is sometimes the case that the class we are discussing, 
from associations of a most unfortunate kind, are tinc- 
tured with a sort of scepticism, which they are as incom- 
petent to define as they are to defend. 

K"ow, in regard to the first class I have indicated — 
the mature adults — let me show what they need while 
associated with the Sunday school. Some of them need 
lecture-classes where the discussion may be thorough, 



228 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

but the questioning is made less prominent; they need 
rooms large, well seated, and separated from the school 
proper ; they need experienced and expert teachers ; they 
need to be brought into closer church relations; they 
need strong, wholesome, quickening, refining literature, 
and should have educational facilities — such as are sug- 
gested by the "Lyceum Course" of study, that of the 
"Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle," and the 
"Victoria Reading Circle." 

They should be urged to take the regular periodicals 
of the church. They should be set to work in pastoral 
ways — visiting and reading to the sick, giving to the 
poor, and helping in all benevolent work. They should 
be trained in normal studies, that they may serve as 
teachers in the Sabbath school; and, above all, they 
should be brought into the personal experience of the 
spiritual life. 

These adults might be used as the basis of an advanced 
department — the "assembly," which I shall discuss 
later on. 

I wish now to address myself to one of the most im- 
portant and difficult problems of the times in connection 
with the Sunday school. It is the relation to the Sun- 
day school of the average youth, whether or not he be 
classed among the "most troublesome of all." I claim 
that he requires wiser treatment than he at present 
receives. 

Boys don't like to be considered and treated as 
children. They don't like it at home. They resent it 
on the street. They are not required to submit to it in 
the public schools. Wise educators study the instincts 
of human nature, and in harmony with them adjust 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 229 

their plans. They grade their pupils and provide for 
them in Kindergarten, primary school, grammar school, 
high school; and then in college, with its successive 
stages of freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior, the 
laws of age, attainment, fitness, are consulted and re- 
garded. 

Boys are not mortified in the public schools by ill- 
timed or indiscriminate assignment. The dawning of 
manhood is recognized and its importance appreciated. 
It is treated with wise consideration, and thus with the 
pupil self-respect grows with his respect for the school 3 
its teachers, and the system of education they represent. 
The teachers there do not come to the a dear children" 
and talk childish talk, illuminated illustrations, simpli- 
fied simplicity, sickening every sensible boy and girl 
with monosyllabic goodishness. Teachers in our secular 
schools rather recognize young ladies or young gentle- 
men as being men and women who can appreciate ma- 
ture thought, solve problems for themselves, exercise 
sound judgment, and on most matters which concern 
them decide sensibly. No boy thinks it unmanly to go 
to school, nor is he ashamed of the fact that he does go, 
for the school acknowledges the progressive develop- 
ments of his nature, and adapts itself to them. Thus 
it commands his self-respect, enlists his advocacy, 
kindles his enthusiasm. 

How does the average Sunday-school administration 
appear in the light of this w 7 ise policy of secular edu- 
cators ? I am compelled to answer that it suffers seri- 
ously by the comparison. Its courses of study are less 
systematic. The infant and the senior often occupy 
the same room. The teaching is more superficial. The 



230 THE MODEE1ST SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

average tone is less elevated, although dealing with 
infinitely more sacred things. The spirit is more frivo- 
lous. The standards are lower, and often the lack of 
reverence is appalling. The very name handicaps it. 
Traditionally and historically the Sunday school is an 
institution for little children. Actually the Sunday 
school is a child's affair. Sunday-school men are "chil- 
dren's men/' Sunday-school speeches are "children's 
speeches/' and Sunday-school services are services so 
conducted as to "make sure that the children can under- 
stand/' and Sunday-school books are supposed to be, and 
for a long time were, a diluted sort of literature. 

All this being true to a large extent (although I have 
stated it quite as strongly as the facts will justify), what 
will the attitude of school boys and girls be toward the 
institution ; familiar as they are with another and better 
educational system, and trained as they are to recog- 
nition on the higher plane above indicated? The re- 
sults are precisely what the facts indicated and pre- 
dicted. Young people go away from the Sunday school. 
Many of them remain up to seventeen or eighteen years 
of age through parental authority, or because of the 
"good time" socially which they enjoy; but they do 
not regard it or respect it as a place of religious 
worship and religious culture — solemn, dignified, and 
spiritual. 

What are the suggestions of common sense to the 
Sunday-school leaders ? Manifestly : 

1. The Sunday school should be graded, and the lines 
drawn as sharply, at least, between the primary and the 
senior as in connection with our public systems. Chil- 
dren and grown people may associate in the church by 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 231 

virtue of the family relation, and adults not in any wise 
feel themselves belittled thereby ; but to assign girls and 
boys who are trying, whether wisely or not, to outgrow 
the conditions and limitations of childhood, with the 
smallest children under the same organization, is simply 
suicidal on the part of the church that does it. 

2. I am sometimes tempted to say that the Sunday 
school proper should be limited to children, and that for 
the senior pupils another, higher, more dignified depart- 
ment should be provided, and that with a different 
name ; that the old associations may not embarrass and 
hamper the church in its attempt to hold the young 
people. I have elsewhere recommended the organiza- 
tion of the "assembly" for young people, fifteen years of 
age and over. 

3. The public exercises of the "senior grade," or 
"assembly," should be of a different character from 
those of the Sunday school. There must be a difference 
in the adaptation of subject-matter, as well as in the 
tone and manner. Lectures and outlines should take 
the place of mere drills ; independent statements by in- 
dividual pupils and teachers instead of simultaneous 
responses. A higher class of music may be rendered, 
doctrinal discussions be conducted, responsive readings 
introduced, and the methods of the college rather than 
those of the primary or intermediate school should con- 
trol the hour. 

4. It is a very easy and will, I have no doubt, be 
a very popular thing to protest against this innovation. 
But the experience of the church in the past is sufficient 
to impress all thoughtful people with the importance of 
some such movement, by which we may command our 



232 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

young people; and this tentative suggestion is worthy, 
at least, of consideration. 

As to the name of this proposed department let me 
offer a remark. There is something in a name. At its 
utterance, by the law of association, there troop into the 
soul ideas and sentiments agreeable or uncomfortable, 
enlarging or belittling, awakening self-respect or annoy- 
ance, to put the experience no more strongly. A name 
will prejudice even old and wise people against a man, 
an association, a locality. It may all be very weak, 
indeed, in the wise man, but facts of human nature are 
to be recognized and dealt with discreetly, and where it 
is perfectly easy to avoid the exciting cause of uncom- 
fortable associations or strong prejudices, it were folly 
to refuse the concession. Therefore I plead for a de- 
partment of church service adapted to the needs, and, 
if you please so to call them, prejudices, of our young 
people. 

Concerning this name I have no strong preferences. 
The "Senior Department" is very good, but, after all, it 
is the senior department of the Sunday school. "Bible 
Service" is good. To the "Bible School" there may be 
less objection, except as it invariably identifies itself in 
the thought of the term Sunday school. The "Christian 
Institute" is well chosen. The Assembly still better 
meets my view. It finds substantially a precedent in 
the separate synagogue service of the early ages — a 
service of consultation and discussion following the 
usual public service. Vitringa, in his account of the 
methods of the synagogue, says, "There was first read 
a portion of the Law, which was explained by a running 
commentary, so that the discourses in the ancient syna- 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 233 

gogues were not at all similar to a sermon of the present- 
day, but were rather exegeses and paraphrases of what 
was either remarkable or obscure in the portions read; 
but besides the running commentary, or paraphrases, 
there was frequently a discourse (analogous to our ser- 
mon) after the usual service of the synagogue. But 
this was not all, however, offered in the synagogue 
proper, but in an adjoining room, after the regular 
service, discussions and more thorough investigations 
of the truth were carried on. To these disputations 
references are frequently made in the !New Testament." 
Kitto says, "In the Jerusalem Talmud a tradition 
was alleged that there had been at Jerusalem four 
hundred and sixty synagogues, each of which contained 
an apartment for the reading of the Law, and another 
for the meeting of the men for inquiry, and deep re- 
search and instruction. There were three of these meet- 
ing-places in the Temple, and in all of these it was the 
custom for the students to sit on the floor, while the 
teachers occupied seats. Paul describes himself as hav- 
ing sat at the feet of Gamaliel. There are many things 
in the Talmud which throw light on the manner of pre- 
siding in these assemblies. Thus, a student asked 
Gamaliel whether the evening prayer was obligatory 
by the Law or not. He answered in the affirmative, 
on which the student informed him that Rabbi Joshua 
had told him that it was not obligatory. 'Well,' said 
Gamaliel, 'when he appears to-morrow in the assembly 
step forward and ask again the question.' He did so, 
and the expected answer raised a discussion, a full 
account of which is given. The meeting-places of the 
wise stood, mostly, in connection with the synagogues, 



234 THE MODEKN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

and the wise or learned men usually met soon after 
divine worship ; the reading was given in the upper 
department of the synagogues, where they discussed 
those matters which required more research and inquiry. 
The pupils or students in these assemblies were not mere 
boys coming up to be instructed in the mere rudiments 
of knowledge, but men or youths of more or less ad- 
vanced education, who come thither either to profit by 
listening to the learned discussions, or to participate in 
them themselves." 

To the term "Assembly" I can conceive no objection. 
There are no associations in connection with it em- 
barrassing to young men who do not pride themselves 
on being "Sunday-school scholars" perpetually in an 
association with primary and intermediate pupils. 
Such youths will not object to membership in the assem- 
bly — made up of persons over fifteen years of age, 
enrolling, as it soon will, a large number of the best men 
and women in the community. 

I do not recommend an immediate and violent sepa- 
ration between the Sunday school and the other and 
higher society or department. That may come in due 
time, but, for most churches, the time is not yet. Let 
the whole Biblical department of the church — now 
called "Sunday school" — remain as it is, with its 
primary and intermediate and senior sections. Let all 
meet, and sing, and pray, and study together as now; 
but within the existing organization a new department, 
with a new name, having well-defined objects, a care- 
fully prepared plan of operations, and let it develop 
within the school until such time as the school and the 
new movement shall be mutually benefited by a separa- 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 235 

tion, if such time should ever arrive. Thus it will not 
be in rivalry, in any sense, with the Sunday school, but 
under the same direction. Its sessions will be held at 
present in the schoolroom with the school. 

It would be possible to dismiss it into the main 
audience-room after the opening exercises, and allow it 
to remain there as long as it chose to stay for special 
services. The assembly, before its separate organiza- 
tion, may hold meetings at the close of the school in the 
main audience-room once a month, or it may hold a 
Sunday evening service, under the direction of the pas- 
tor, once a month. It may meet occasionally for week- 
evening lectures, debates, Biblical exercises, and drills. 
Its existence being guaranteed, it becomes the meeting- 
point for the young and older people of the church. 
It remains with them as an incentive. It gains a firm 
grip upon young people, and prevents their early escape 
from the juvenile, and too often purile, influences of the 
so-called Sunday school. 

I have already intimated that the International 
Lessons will be used by the assembly. Thirty minutes 
may easily be spent in the usual class-study of the Bible 
lesson, which, being reviewed before the assembly in the 
form of a lecture, doctrinal and practical, will prove of 
more value to the senior than the present system of 
review, which attempts to enlist old and young, and 
usually succeeds in effectively doing neither. Supple- 
menting the International Lesson class-study and re- 
view, there may be doctrinal statements from eminent 
theologians, supported by scriptural reading ; difficulties 
may be presented by members of the assembly, and 
answered by the president or pastor. Thus a body of 



236 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

divinity may be taught to our young people; captious- 
ness, cavilling, frivolity, all being avoided, and an ear- 
nest, reverent tone characterizing the services. 

A brief "doctrinale," or service of doctrine, made up 
of Scripture texts, creed-forms, and sacred hymns and 
chants, may form a fitting and impressive close for the 
Sabbath session of the assembly. Occasionally — say 
once a month — the pastor may invite the assembly to 
assist him in the evening service, and, employing one 
of the "assembly services," the hour may be spent in 
solemn and inspiring worship. Let us suppose that the 
assembly has thus been invited by the pastor to meet 
in the church on a given Sunday evening for service, in 
lieu of the regular evening sermon. "Assembly Service, 
No. 1," is distributed.* It contains a responsive Bible 
service, hymns, and readings from standard authors — 
the whole centering in one doctrine, "The Being and 
Attributes of God." The rich treasures of Scripture on 
this subject are selected and arranged for antiphonal 
reading ; the sublime hymns of the ages furnish stanzas 
of wondrous beauty and power. Two or three young 
men read in turn, from ten to fifteen of the great theo- 
logians, extracts setting forth in noblest language man's 
loftiest conceptions of God. The pastor preaches a 
fifteen-minute doctrinal sermon on God. Thus the 
evening service is made an "assembly service." The 
members of the new department are enlisted in it to a 
white heat of enthusiasm. Substantial and sublime 
truths pass before the minds of our youth. The splen- 
dors of rhetoric, the weight of vigorous thought, the 
sweet simplicities of the Holy Scriptures, the inspira- 

* For Assembly Service, No. 1, see Appendix G. 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 237 

tion of sublime poetry, are all enlisted in the training 
of our congregations. A second monthly service brings 
before us, in the same general plan, the doctrine of 
"Sin ;" the third, "The Offices of Jesus Christ/' and so 
on through the various fundamental doctrines of evan- 
gelical Christianity. During the week there may be 
occasional meetings for conversations on Biblical and 
literary subjects. The social life of the church may thus 
be elevated. Young people may be taught how to 
spend an evening intelligently and pleasantly without 
resorting to the card-table or the dance. The schemes 
of the Lyceum, the "Victoria Eeading Circle/' and of 
the "Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle'' may 
be adopted, and thus our young people be held, as they 
are not now held, to the church. 

Of course there will be objections. "We have a good 
senior department in our Sunday school already." Then, 
good friend, if you are satisfied that your senior depart- 
ment is doing the work needed for your church, I have 
only this to say : first, that "Senior Department" is a very 
good name for the institution ; secondly, provide for your 
senior department some of the special services outlined 
above, and you will meet with still greater success. 

"Such a department in our church would create 
rivalry between school and assembly." That might not 
be wholly a bad thing. The rivalry in the several grades 
of the secular school works benefit to all. With pastor 
and superintendent of the Sunday school, the same men 
being pastor and president of the assembly, you need 
have no fear of dangerous rivalry. 

"There will be dissatisfaction among our boys and 
girls from twelve to fifteen years of age." If your 



238 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL,. 

standards improve, you may make it an honorable thing 
for boys and girls to be prepared to enter the assembly, 
not merely because of age, but by virtue of their attain- 
ment; and if the high school creates ambition in the 
several grades of a grammar school, neither high school 
nor grammar school is damaged by the eager desire 
of pupils to pass from one into the other as soon as 
possible. Indeed, your older scholars in Sunday school 
will feel more respect for the church as an educating 
agency, and the Sunday school as its instrument, by 
having this higher department constantly before and 
above them — the "assembly," which has no way out of 
it except at the end of life into the gate of heaven. 

"We have no time in our church for another meet- 
ing." You have time for the meetings that ought to be 
held. With the ought that comes from God there is 
always a how. You now have young people's prayer- 
meetings, church sociables, lyceums, and singing schools. 
You have need of something more substantial and health^ 
ful than any of these. And the best things of these may 
be made better under the direction of the assembly. 

"It would make trouble in our Sunday school/' 
Perhaps not. If you are sure of this, it is better to 
move more slowly and steadily along in the best way 
practicable at present, than hurriedly, at the expense of 
charity and good feeling, to adopt new enterprises, how- 
ever plausible they may seem. Where pastor, superin- 
tendent, teacher, and older members do not want and 
would not sustain an assembly, or where the work may 
be as effectively done for our older pupils under the 
present system, it were folly, indeed, to make the 
change. Where, therefore, the need is not felt, the plan 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 239 

is not recommended. Thus, they who do not approve the 
new proposition can go on quietly and successfully in 
the ways of their approval ; and they who feel the need 
of this other step may take it tentatively, humbly, and 
work it out to practical results. 

The following plan or constitution may be adopted, 
and from time to time modified as opportunities for the 
separate existence and operations of the assembly be- 
come possible: 

Article 1. The assembly of Church is designed 

to promote the higher Biblical, doctrinal, and general 

culture of the adults and young people of the 

Church and community. 

Article 2. The assembly shall be composed of per- 
sons fifteen years of age and over, who consent to become 
members, and who agree to conform to its regulations. 

Article 3. The assembly shall be under the direc- 
tion of the -.* 

Article 4. The officers of the assembly shall be the 
pastor, president,f secretary, treasurer, and tutors, who 
shall be elected, the pastor excepted, by the .* 

Article 5. The assembly shall hold its regular ses- 
sions at 4 

* The governing body of the assembly may be the Sunday-school 
Board, or a special assembly committee made up of the pastor, 
president, secretary, and tutors of the assembly, with a committee 
of three or more, from the church, the quarterly conference, session, 
or vestry. 

f The superintendent of the Sunday school should, whenever prac- 
ticable, be president of the assembly. 

t It may be necessary at the beginning to say, "The assembly 
shall hold its regular sessions in connection with the Sunday school, 
remaining occasionally after the dismission of the school, but meet- 
ing at other convenient hours for special sessions." 



240 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Article 6. The assembly shall use the International 
Lessons, and such additional exercises in the form of 
lectures, conversations, drills, and other services, as may 
be adopted by the committee in charge. 

Article 7. A committee of five on special work shal] 
be appointed by the Board (of which committee the 
pastor and president shall be ex-officio members), and it 
shall be the duty of this committee to provide a library, 
secular and religious, for the assembly, week-evening 
meetings for lyceum lectures, scientific, literary, and 
doctrinal studies, a special Sunday afternoon or evening 
service, under the control of the pastor. 

Let me look at another difficulty in the management 
of the young people through the teaching department of 
the church. It is in the matter of home study. They 
won't study at home. 

This is the almost universal complaint of our Sunday- 
school authorities against young people who attend the 
Sunday school: They won't study their Sunday-school 
lessons at home. That is, they don't ; and it is safe to 
assume that they don't because they won't. This is a 
way human nature has. 

The boys do, however, study something at home. So 
do the girls. The boys study ball and bat, and laws of 
base-ball grounds. The girls study bonnets and cut of 
dress, and style of tying this and setting off that. It is 
simply astonishing to see with what eagerness they look 
up the subjects in which they are interested; what a 
world of facts and laws they acquire; what questions 
they can answer; what difficulties overcome, and what 
time and talk and patience give to all these topics. But 
they won't study their Sunday-school lessons at home. 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 241 

Day-school lessons these same young people do study. 
Systematically, year in and year out, in all weathers, 
and in spite of the varied attractions and recreations of 
the changing seasons. Not that they are always inter- 
ested. Not that their delights, like the delights of game 
and dress, are hidden among the fascinating leaves of 
text-books or among the golden minutes of recitation 
hours. Far otherwise; but they study, nevertheless. 
They must study. They must study to keep their 
"stand" on the records ; to retain the respect of teachers 
and classmates; to make a good report at home; to 
secure "promotion" when the time comes. 

So it appears that our older Sunday-school scholars 
do study — outside of the Sunday school limits and les- 
sons. What they delight in they study. What they 
are driven to they study. In Sunday-school lessons 
there is little to delight souls absorbed in merely secular 
things ; and in Sunday-school administration there is no 
power to compel, and there are no incentives such as 
come from class rivalries and promotions, home appro- 
bation or censure. The fact is, therefore, everywhere 
thrust upon our unwilling acceptance — young people 
won't study the Bible as they do grammar, or arith- 
metic, or science in the secular schools. 

Add to all this the feeling of parents, as well as of 
the students themselves, that so much mental effort in 
"getting lessons" all through the week might excuse 
young people from hard study in connection with Sun- 
day school. The dear things need rest from brain work. 
They will wear out. They run the risk of hydro j 
cephalus, or other brain affection. 

Besides, what is the use ? Beligion is a simple thing. 
16 



242 THE MODERN" SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

It is a matter of feeling. The intellectual forces may be 
exercised in science and literature, but the Bible is a 
book for the heart. Its lessons are to be absorbed. And 
too much study may make sceptics of them. And, be- 
sides, those old times of Bible history — full of miracles 
and murders, and stories of wicked men and frightful 
wars — who cares for them ? What good end do they 
serve in our age of electric light and progressive 
thought ? 

Look further. See the woeful want, already acknowl- 
edged, of provisions for gradation and promotion in the 
schools. See the superficiality of the general reviews. 
Note the heavy demands of the pulpit every Sabbath 
upon both pastor and people. Note the lack of pastoral 
interest in this whole department of his church. Watch 
the amused smile of the "scholarly" divine at the re- 
ports made to him of puerilities in class and desk — from 
which his active interest and presence and influence 
might save both teachers and scholars. What wonder 
that young people are indifferent and negligent ! What 
wonder that they think it "smart" to puzzle the teacher 
with absurd questions on obscure points, or quote the 
"wit" of Mark Twain, Josh Billings, and other prophets 
of the hour, concerning Bible miracles, "Sunday-school 
youth," and their precocious piety! 

With all these elements on the side of apathy, 
indolence, and scorn, is it any wonder that multitudes 
of our "young people won't study their lessons at- 
home ?" 

But I am not through with the subject. I am dealing 
with an evil. I seek its root. This found, it will be 
easier to remove the evil itself. The apathy I deprecate 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 243 

— this want of taste for spiritual things — is of the 
"world." The world is very fond of evil, and very much 
given up to it, and violent antagonism to truth and good 
is not the only way in which the world opposes the 
kingdom of Christ. Atmospheres are as dangerous as 
open assaults. In this indifference to Bible study, the 
enemy is at work. 

Let us look into the matter still further. Ought our 
young people to study their Sunday-school lessons % 
Does the "ought" linger where the "won't" wins % 
Where duty is, one can stand securely and speak em- 
phatically. Are there energies in the air that may bo 
concentrated, and create in the young heart a sharp con- 
viction of personal responsibility ? If so, we need not 
fear worldly-mindedness, indifference, or contempt. 

What, then, shall we say in answer to the question: 
Ought our young people to study their Sunday-school 
lessons at home ? 

1. Young people need to study the Holy Scriptures. 
"Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by 
taking heed thereto according to Thy Word." "I write 
unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the 
Word of God abideth in you." "Thy Word have I hid 
in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee." 
"From a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, 
which are able to make thee wise unto salvation." 

2. Young people need a time set apart for such study ; 
teachers to direct them; text-books to assist them; 
appointed tasks to incite them. 

3. The question of taste and preference has no more 
place in the solution of this problem than in the studies 
of the secular school. Whether a boy "takes" to arith- 



244 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

metic or not, he must study arithmetic; he must thus 
seek to discipline his mind; he must acquire a knowl- 
edge of rules, and facility in the practical application of 
them. He must do this. He must feel the force of the 
ought, and his success as a student is measured by the 
manner in which all his powers respond to the ought. 
As in arithmetic, so in grammar, geography, and every t 
other branch of study. It is only by discipline that ho 
can acquire taste, facility, and pleasure. Conscience is 
a strong factor in true secular study. It is the same in 
Bible study. Every argument which urges a boy to 
study the lessons of the everyday school should be 
equally operative in connection with the lessons of the 
Sunday school. 

4. Where pupils are not alive to the importance of 
this fidelity in day school, teachers and parents make 
clear to them the demands of the situation. Parents 
and teachers should do the same service in behalf of the 
Sunday-school lesson. Parental authority and the voice 
of conscience should speak forcibly in the one as in the 
other department of education. Our young people won't 
study the Sunday-school lesson at home because they 
are indifferent to it. They are indifferent to it because 
parents, ministers, and teachers do not make fervent 
appeals to their sense of duty. Instead of finding con- 
science reinforcing the arguments, commands, and ap- 
peals of their superiors, they find their apathy concern- 
ing Bible study winked at, and sometimes laughed at, 
and too often justified. 

Let us, then, remember that indifference to Bible 
study on the part of our young people is not, and cannot 
be, innocent. It is sin. And the indifference of the 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 245 

pulpit and the apologetic tone of the home on the 
subject are positively wrong. 

Let us show our young people why they ought to 
study the Sunday-school lesson; why they need it as 
students of secular science and general literature in 
which, too often, the religious element is ignored; why 
they need it as responsible subjects of God's government, 
with a destiny before them, an account to be rendered, 
a character to be developed, a hell to be avoided, a 
heaven to be attained. 

Instead of appeals to pride, to the personal love of 
the teacher, a desire to make a good show in the general 
review, or to keep up the esprit de corps of the school, 
let us develop conscience, and appeal to it. 

Quote the Word of God as our authority on the sub- 
ject, and deal with this whole question, not as a matter 
of taste or whim or policy, but as a matter of positive 
duty, commanded in the Word of God, and for the dis- 
charge or neglect of which every pupil is personally 
responsible to God. 

And finally, as to the "troublesome" pupils, let me 
say to the almost discouraged teacher: Do not be dis- 
heartened. 1. Remember what they are to be in the 
future — the fathers and the mothers of the next genera- 
tion. 

2. Eemember that the period through which they are 
passing is not likely to last long, and yet that is full of 
the gravest possibilities. Therefore teach for the fu- 
ture. The truth earnestly taught to-day will certainly 
vield fruit in the future. 

3. Be very patient. Never seem to be annoyed by 
the irregularities and mischievous devisings of such 



246 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

pupils. Endure ! Endure ! Endure ! Be full of good 
humor. Never scold. Let them look upon you as a 
cheery, good-natured soul, whose life has a great deal of 
sunshine in it. 

4. The next rule will be easy enough to observe if 
you can keep the last one. It is this : Win the love of 
your pupils. They have it in them to love any one 
who w T ill come into their sphere with confidence and 
sympathy for them. 

5. Teach with great simplicity. Teach them very 
much as you would teach an infant class, but don't let 
them know that you are trying to do that. Give them 
the clearest illustrations, the plainest applications, but 
do it in a tone and manner which shall really respect the 
age and social standing of such pupils. 

6. Kindle their ambition. Appeal to their self- 
respect. Show them the worth of knowledge and the 
contemptibleness of ignorance. Call their attention to 
the successful people in their own neighborhood. 

7. Teach the Law of God with all its severest penal- 
ties. We make a great mistake in these days in not 
presenting to our youth the realities of judgment, the 
holiness of God, the righteous wrath of God, and the 
certainty of future punishment. All this should be 
done affectionately and with great tenderness, but it 
should be done. 

8. Put the right books into their hands. A good book 
is often the means of saving a young man from per- 
dition. 

9. Visit and understand and secure the co-operation 
of their parents or guardians. 

10. Get them interested in a social organization of 



THE SENIOR CLASSES. 247 

some kind. A little society in the church might be 
conducted in the interest of such youth, and would be 
of incalculable advantage. 

11. One thing more remains to be said. The earlier 
you can commit your young people to the personal serv- 
ice of Christ the stronger your hold upon them, and the 
safer they will be while passing through the perilous 
period I have described. 

The movement known as "The Recreative Evening 
Classes," begun by Dr. J. B. Paton, of Nottingham, 
and which is now receiving such hearty approval in 
England, deserves not only words of commendation and 
widespread announcement, but the most active co-opera- 
tive efforts on the part of every pastor and of every lay- 
man who desires the safety and useful training of the 
young people "between thirteen and eighteen years of 
age." The plan will give the church a firm grasp on 
this important portion of our population. 



248 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL, 



CHAPTEK XV. 

THE LESSONS. 

God has commanded man to study His Word ; to read, 
search, meditate upon, and obey it. He has likewise 
commanded parents to teach it to their children, even to 
the little ones "which have not known anything/' He 
has made the study of it a means of grace, of enlighten- 
ment (Ps. cxix. 130), of conversion (Ps. xix. 7), of en- 
richment (Ps. cxix. 72), of comfort (Ps. cxix. 50), of 
edification (Acts xx. 32), of strength (1 John ii. 14), 
of sanctification (John xvii. 17), of stability (Ps. xxxvii. 
31). He has likened this Word of His grace to all 
precious and excellent things — to light (Ps. cxix. 105), 
to seed (Luke viii. 11), to rain and dew (Deut. xxxii. 
2), to honey (Ps. xix. 10), to silver (Ps. xii. 6), to fine 
gold (Ps. cxix. 127), to all riches (Ps, cxix. 14), to a 
two-edged sword (Heb. iv. 12), to a fire (Jer. xxiii. 
29). He has commanded His church to believe, love, 
and teach it. 

The Bible is an immense book. The ordinary edi- 
tions contain over twelve hundred pages. The variety 
of its contents is astonishing. There is scarcely a 
branch of human knowledge upon which it does not shed 
some light. It is a book of diverse sciences, albeit its 
central science is that of salvation. To this all the rest 
bow, as the sheaves of Hebron and the stars of heaven 
bowed to Joseph. In the gradual unfolding of the plan 



THE LESSONS. 249 

of redemption which the Bible records we find a treas- 
ure of history, of biography, of geography, of ancient, 
peculiar, and quite Oriental usages, of philosophy, of 
ethics, of theology. Now, no man has a right to say 
concerning any book of the Bible, or of any subject dis- 
cussed in the Bible, that it is useless or unimportant; 
for God has said, "All Scripture is given by inspiration 
of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for 
correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the 
man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto 
all good works" (2 Tim. iii. 16, 17). 

It is the duty of the church to teach the Word — its 
claims as a divine book, and as the standard of faith 
and practice for all men ; its construction and contents ; 
its exact language, especially in its doctrinal, didactic, 
and devotional portions. 

The Bible is, and it is not, a systematic book. It 
seems a disorderly mass of history and poetry, of chro- 
nological tables and sweet promises. It is apparently a 
confusion of ethical, archaeological, liturgical, and 
poetical sayings and records; a mixing up of human 
transactions and divine declarations. 

In reality, the Bible is a systematic book. It is a 
growth, and not a mechanism; a mountain, and not a 
pyramid. There is order in it, for it was developed 
according to a divine order and under divine direction. 
It is a history, extending through long ages of divine 
providence and revelation. The history had its be- 
ginnings — its seed-sowing, and then its germination, its 
growth, its blossoming, and its fruit-bearing. Its con- 
fusion is only seeming confusion. There is a divine 
"first and last" in it, a "beginning and an ending." 



250 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

The stars that seem scattered without purpose or plan 
in the azure have their courses and harmonies and 
changeless order, as seen by the all-knowing and all- 
controlling Creator. 

The Bible is not a classified cyclopaedia of things 
celestial and divine. It has no alphabetic arrangement 
by which, as in a dictionary, one may turn at a moment 
to the sum total of divine revelation on a given topic. 
Its history reaches through the whole book. It is a 
book of geography from Eden to Ephesus. Its prophecy 
and poetry are found almost everywhere. Its unfold- 
ings of divine character occur in Genesis and in Revela- 
tion, and in every book of the sacred canon. And as for 
its promises, like stars they "blossom in the infinite 
heavens" of this divine expanse. 

There is a hidden system in Scripture. The student 
seeks and finds it. There is a mechanical system which 
may be constructed after the larger and less apparent 
divine system, and by which the student may the more 
easily master the Word — "rightly dividing it." This 
mechanical system the teacher should employ for his 
own guidance, and for the guidance especially of his 
pupils. The Scripture area is so vast, its sweep so far- 
reaching, its objects of search and thought so colossal, 
that children need an orrery to bring within their grasp 
the unity of plan, and the inter-relation of the various, 
vast, and remote objects in the Scripture heavens. 

When Jesus fed the five thousand "He commanded 
them [His disciples] to make all sit down by companies 
upon the green grass. And they sat down in ranks, by 
hundreds and by fifties." The system facilitated the 
feeding of so great a multitude. Every great work is 



THE LESSONS. 251 

promoted by a thorough plan. "Order is heaven's first 
law." 

This systematic arrangement of Bible truth is most 
useful. Bible geography should lie in the mind — a 
living map, as the geography of the earth at large does 
in the minds of day-school pupils. Bible history should 
take chronological form, and in comprehensive outline 
should be like mental pigeon-holes, to which Bible facts 
at their casual recognition should at once fly, "as doves 
to their windows." Explanations of Bible archeology, 
laws of Bible interpretation, outlines of Bible theology, 
arrangements of Bible promises — all these should form 
a part of the Bible student's mental furnishing. All 
these should be taught in a systematic way by parents, 
teachers, and superintendents to the scholars under their 
care. 

A careful plan of study, followed regularly and sys- 
tematically by a well-organized church or mission school, 
must certainly secure to its members a more thorough 
knowledge of the Holy Scriptures than could be possible 
in the absence of system — allowing always that the 
presence of God's Spirit be devoutly sought. While tho 
most admirable mechanism in the world would be a fail- 
ure without a motive power, the mechanism is not to be 
ignored because the power is indispensable. To pro- 
mote a thorough Biblical training for spiritual ends in 
connection with the church, a system or course of study 
is desirable. 

Let us inquire what such course of study should 
comprise. 

1. Primarily it should embrace a series of lessons 
on the salient facts of the Bible, from the creation of 



252 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

man to the close of the New Testament history. The 
biographical and historical portions of the Bible, studied 
in the light of the life and death and resurrection of 
Jesus Christ, become "profitable for doctrine, for re-» 
proof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." 

2. The leading "doctrines" of Christian theology — ■ 
doctrines relating to God, to man, and to the Mediator — 
the wise, rich, and suggestive formulas of theological 
truth which are embodied in the creeds and catechism 
of the church, should be carefully, earnestly, and prac- 
tically taught to children. TJninstructed adults should 
be glad to receive a training on these important subjects. 
Every minister should be able to say to the parents, 
class-leaders, and Sunday-school teachers of his church, 
"According to the grace of God which is given unto me, 
as a wise master-builder, I have laid the foundation, and 
another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed 
how he buildeth thereupon." He should faithfully ex- 
hort his assistants "to build upon this foundation gold, 
silver, precious stones." 

3. The recognition of Bible names, usages, etc., in the 
casual investigation of a specific lesson, is of great ad- 
vantage to a student. A knowledge of the "summaries" 
of Bible truth is also beneficial. Therefore a complete 
course of study should comprise special lessons in "Bible 
History," "Bible Geography," "Bible Chronology," 
"Bible Manners and Customs," "The Bible as a Book," 
"Christian Evidences," "Bible Interpretation." 

4. The church should teach its youth and its adults 
the devotional literature of the ages in prose and poetry, 
which has become classic and which promotes spiritual 
life. 



THE LESSONS. 253 

5. It should teach them the principal characters and 
events of church history. 

6. It should carefully train its members in the evan- 
gelical basis of all missionary and reformatory effort for 
which the church is or should be responsible, and the 
facts which demand and inspire such effort. 

7. If a particular denomination be doubtful concern- 
ing its interpretations of the Word, distrustful of its 
ecclesiastical organization, ashamed of its historical 
records, it should carefully avoid teaching anything 
relating to itself to the children committed to its care. 
If, however, it be conscientious in holding its distinctive 
doctrines, observing its distinctive usages, or perpetu- 
ating its denominational history, let the children be 
thoroughly taught these things, and be referred to the 
Word of God as the final and only authority for them. 

It is, in a word, the duty of the church to teach 
what every Christian should know. It should teach the 
contents of the Bible in the wisest manner possible, 
adopting the best methods of the best teachers. For 
example, sacred history should be taught as secular 
history is taught, not by mere memorizing, but by the 
aid of comprehensive summaries and catechetical ar- 
rangements, chronology, geography, word-picturing, 
analyses of character, discovery of immediate and re- 
mote causes, etc. And the memory should be stored 
with large and connected portions of divine truth in the 
very language of the Word. 

It is the duty of the church to recognize and employ 
in this work of teaching the several agencies under its 
control; not to hold any one institution or department 
responsible for the entire work of instruction, but to dis- 



254 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

tribute responsibility, and secure cordial co-operation 
between the several agencies. 

Here lies one of the radical defects of our modern 
church life. The Sunday school has turned over to it 
the responsibility of the Biblical and religious training 
of children. It is said that children neglect the sanc- 
tuary because they go to Sunday school, that parents 
neglect family prayer and catechizing because the chil- 
dren go to Sunday school, and that pastors excuse them- 
selves from special catechetical and other classes on the 
same ground. I think (perhaps the wish is father to 
the thought) that this view of the case is not sustained 
by the facts. At the same time it behoves us to be ex- 
ceedingly careful and vigilant, lest the original com- 
mission to parents and pastors be transferred to sub- 
ordinate agencies and officers. The whole church must 
teach. Home, pulpit, pastorate, Sunday school, must 
unite. 

Let us now examine a scheme of church study and 
ask how it should be pursued. 

1. A given term of years should be assigned to it — 
six, seven, or eight, according to circumstances. 

2. Parents should make the service of family prayer 
and their home teachings bear upon this course of 
lessons. 

3. The pastor should enter into it most heartily, 
urging parents, teachers, and scholars to fidelity, thor- 
oughness, and spirituality in their efforts. He should, 
in the weekly prayer-meeting and in the pulpit, keep 
the whole question as well as the current subject of 
study before his people. 

4. The pastor and superintendent should hold special 



THE LESSONS. 255 

week-day or evening meetings for drilling the school 
and all persons who are interested in the "specific les- 
sons" and "summaries" of Bible history, geography, 
and doctrine above recommended. 

5. The Sunday-school session should be especially set 
apart for the prosecution of this work. The lesson for 
each Sabbath should run through the entire school. I 
therefore recommend for each school what is called the 
"Uniform Lesson." Here are a few of the considera- 
tions in its favor : 

(1.) It facilitates the teachers preparation. The 
assistance needed by most of our Sabbath-school teachers 
can be given more economically and satisfactorily when 
all have the same lesson to prepare. It requires less time 
•to examine or review one lesson than ten lessons. 

(2.) It facilitates the pastors supervision. The 
pastor is responsible for the doctrinal and practical 
truth upon which his assistants — the Sabbath-school 
teachers — feed his flock. Even if the normal training 
might be as effectually secured in the use of miscellane- 
ous lessons, certainly the guidance and direction in re- 
gard to the subject-matter could not be given half so 
well. 

(3.) It facilitates home preparation. The adult 
department of the church school is increasing every 
year. Soon, we trust, our parents, older brothers, and 
older sisters will be regular members, and with the 
steadily rising intellectual standard of the "Assembly/' 
the home preparation will receive more attention. Even 
as it is, members of the same household might aid each 
other in the lesson during the week if the uniform sys- 
tem were adopted. And the questioning of the old by 



256 THE MODERN" SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

the young for information, or of the young by the old 
for examination, would quicken the interest of all in 
the topic for the week. 

(4.) It increases the effectiveness of the general exer- 
cises of the school. By the class-method of teaching we 
secure thoroughness; by the general exercise, enthu- 
siasm. The uniform system gives the key-note to all the 
general exercises of the school. It arrests the eye by the 
blackboard sentence or symbol. It fixes the rounds in 
the ladder of the prayer. It runs through the hymns 
or songs. It facilitates the general review at the 
close of the class recitations. Healthful emulation 
may be excited, defective teaching in the class com- 
pensated, thought concentrated, and truth practically 
applied by the general examination under the uniform 
system. 

(5.) It may vastly augment the power of the pulpit. 
When the public mind has been called through the week 
to any particular subject, the pulpit commands pro- 
found attention on the Sabbath by its discussion. The 
more the people have thought about it, the more eagerly 
they listen to the pulpit utterance. For this reason the 
wise pastor frequently selects as the topic of his morning 
or evening discourse the Sunday-school lesson of the 
day. He has in such cases been rewarded at the very 
outset by a fixed attention, which has kindled his own 
soul, and thus given the truth double power. And 
should the family readings from the Word of God every 
morning be suggested by the subject of the lesson for the 
ensuing Sabbath, and the text of the Sabbath be found 
in the lesson, and all the exercises of the school be pene- 
trated by its leading idea, what educating power would 



THE LESSONS. 257 

the church exert, as compared with its present miscel- 
laneous array of working ! 



The arguments against uniformity, drawn from the 
analogies of secular education, seem to us unfair and 
defective- The Sabbath school is not what the secular 
schools are. These have from ten to twenty text-books 
on as many distinct sciences. The Sunday school has 
one, only one, text-book on one science. The secular 
schools teach from twenty-five to thirty-five hours a 
week; the Sabbath school scarcely averages one hour. 
May not these disparities justify a diversity in method ? 

This whole difficulty is removed by remembering 
that the Bible contains in every part truth for the 
weakest and the strongest. From the same lesson phi- 
losophers and babes may learn wisdom. In these fair 
gardens of revelation are fountains everywhere, from 
which the little and illiterate ones may sip, while the 
learned may drink deep, and wonder at the sweetness of 
the waters. 

If in any particular school an adult Bible class should 
insist upon pursuing an independent set of lessons, it 
will certainly not decline to spend at least a few minutes 
in the general resume of the current lesson, for the sake 
of uniformity. 

The International Lesson scheme is now beginning 
(1887) its third series of seven years. While the author 
claims the honor of having originated the two great 
lesson systems — the "National" (of Chicago) and the 
"Berean" (of New York) — in 1866 and 1868 respec- 
tively, and of having prepared and published the first of 
the now popular "Lesson Leaves,"* all of which made 

* See Appendix H. 

17 



258 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

possible the conception of a "National system," it is to 
B. F. Jacobs, of Chicago, that the honor for this concep- 
tion belongs. And to him, moreover, belongs the honor 
of having secured the experiment when the "odds" were 
against him. The International Lesson system, which 
naturally followed the "National," the author of this 
volume proposed and most strenuously advocated on 
both sides of the Atlantic, as the only method by which 
the local rivalry of publishing houses in America could 
be neutralized. The story of the whole movement has 
been accurately and interestingly told by the Rev. 
Simeon Gilbert, of Boston. Large credit must, of 
course, be given in all such historical reminiscences to 
the Sunday School Union, 56, Old Bailey, London, 
which issued uniform lessons twenty-two years before 
the National scheme was devised, and which, with royal 
magnanimity and zeal, has co-operated from the begin- 
ning of the International movement. 

There are many advantages in this system of uni- 
versal uniformity: 

1. It has increased the influence of the Bible over the 
people. It has advertised the Bible ; has led to its wider 
use; has increased the popular knowledge of its con- 
tents; has exalted it as the only standard of faith and 
practice, and has promoted the love of the Book among 
the people. 

2. Unity in the study of the Word has promoted the 
spirit of unity among the people of God. It reminds us 
that we all search the same Word, love the same truth, 
depend on the same Spirit, appeal to the same authority. 
The study of God's Word for ourselves is the surest way 
of promoting growth in the grace and in the knowledge 



THE LESSONS. 259 

of our Lord Jesus Christ. This must be acceptable to 
Him who prayed, "Sanctify them through Thy truth: 
Thy Word is truth. . . . That they may be one, . . . 
that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me." 
The benefits to the church at large by the week of 
prayer it is hard to estimate. How much greater the 
advantages of a union every Sabbath in the study of the 
divine Word ? The race has had its Babel ; but the race 
has had its Pentecost. We are now under the dispensa- 
tion of Pentecost. By all denominations studying the 
same subject we come to see the truth from many stand- 
points. We are surprised to find in how many particu- 
lars we agree, and in how few we differ. This unity is 
greatly needed, in view of the present power of Roman- 
ism, Rationalism, and worldliness. 

3. It has increased the influence of true educational 
philosophy and methods in the church. 

The laws of the intellect in religious teaching are the 
same as those observed in secular culture. Wise teach- 
ers who follow the best educational methods are, other 
things being equal, the teachers best qualified to promote 
Biblical training. The International system has exalted 
the teaching work in the school ; has driven teachers to 
the study of educational principles and examples; has 
led to the general schemes and outlines of Biblical 
study; has set parents and teachers at work teaching 
children at home and elsewhere during the week; has 
instituted that plan of Bible study which takes up great 
characters and events, and makes them centers of 
thought and investigation ; has increased the intellectual 
power of plain men in the church; has led young and 
scholarly men to appreciate the higher intellectual 



260 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

standards, and has tended to connect Biblical and scien- 
tific study. The one great text-book has thus increased 
the power, the teaching power, of our Sunday schools. 

4. The same lesson in every Sabbath school is a great 
convenience to those who move from place to place, or 
who, by the exigencies of travel, are thrown frequently 
in new neighborhoods. The removal of a family from 
one section of the country to another will not suspend 
the course of study which has been commenced. 

5. The common interest felt by Christian people of 
all denominations in specific lessons must promote 
profitable conversation as they chance to meet through 
the week. The results of fourteen years' experiment in 
this direction are very marked and gratifying. 

6. The fact that so many different minds are engaged 
in the preparation of lesson-helps gives variety and 
abundance of aids in the way of notes, comments, out- 
lines, and illustrations, and, by inciting all to a health- 
ful emulation, increases the power of each denomina- 
tional or union organ. 

7. The union conventions and institutes are to be 
rendered doubly interesting and profitable by the dis- 
cussions and illustrative exercises growing out of the 
lesson system. 

8. Denominational interests cannot suffer by this 
union. If the peculiar doctrines of one church are not 
found in a wisely chosen series of three hundred and 
thirty-six Bible lessons, it would be as well not to teach 
these peculiar doctrines at all. The lessons are selected 
from the Bible. The committee makes no provision for 
notes or comments, but leaves every church or individual 
to teach the truths of that selection in his own way. 



THE LESSONS. 261 

It is possible that enthusiasm in such a scheme as 
the International may have to some extent crowded 
back some exercises which hitherto found large place, 
perhaps too large place, in the Sunday school. So 
much regular Bible study may have had this effect. 
The historical method of studying history may have 
left too little time for verbal memorizing. The Bible 
lesson may have taken the place of the catechism. 
From the beginning of the International plan I fore- 
saw this possibility, and therefore, in 1872, provided for 
the church schools under my official care a course of 
lessons, to which I gave the name of "Supplemental 
Lessons," and for which I made a plea before the At- 
lanta International Convention in April, 1878, in which 
plea I said, "The value of the studies supplanted by the 
new system, and of the studies rendered essential, leads 
us to inquire whether we may not, with the Inter- 
national system, combine a series of lessons which shall 
meet the growing demand for the best features of the old 
scheme, remove honest difficulties and objections, and 
thus greatly facilitate Bible study in the church/' 

I at that time proposed a series of supplemental 
lessons occupying about ten minutes a Sabbath, after 
the regular International Lesson, including a sum- 
marized or catechetical arrangement of the facts per- 
taining to the Bible as a book, its evidences, geography, 
history, manners and customs, institutions, doctrines, 
laws of interpretation, etc. ; memory lessons from the 
Holy Scriptures; church catechism; church creed; 
church economy; church w T ork; church hymns; church 
history. 

This supplemental scheme will not be a substitute for 



262 THE MODEEN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

the International series, but it will call attention to 
the wide range of subjects embraced in a thorough Bible 
education; encouraging home, pulpit, and pastoral co- 
operation; the organization of classes outside of the 
Sabbath-school session; cultivating and enriching the 
memory of our pupils during the years of life when this 
faculty is most active and susceptible; providing for 
primary classes material for their use in connection with 
the International Lessons, especially when the latter are 
less adapted and less suggestive to the primary teachers ; 
systematizing and rendering permanent the knowledge 
derived from the International series ; providing for in- 
struction in distinguishing church doctrines, usages, be- 
nevolent work, etc. ; recognizing and providing lessons 
for the church year ; economizing time in the study of 
the International Lessons; rendering a thoroughly 
graduated and progressive course of study possible. 

I had, in 1875, published the following scheme, by 
which the International and the Supplemental Lessons 
might be systematically combined and taught : 

I. Biblical. This comprises — (1) A Series of 
Bible Lessons on the salient facts of the Bible from the 
creation of man to the end of the New Testament canon, 
including selections from the prophetic, poetic, and doc- 
trinal portions of the Scriptures. (2) A Summarized 
or Catechetical Arrangement of the facts pertaining to 
the Bible as a book, its evidences, Bible geography, his- 
tory, manners and customs, institutions, doctrines, and 
laws of interpretation. (3) Memory Lessons from the 
Holy Scriptures, including all such passages as the Com- 
mandments, the twenty-third Psalm, the fifty-third of 
Isaiah, the Sermon on the Mount, the seventeenth of St. 



THE LESSONS. 263 

John, the twelfth of Romans, and other large portions 
of Scripture. We cannot know too much Bible truth, 
nor can we do better than to get it into our minds in the 
very language in which we find it. Nor can we begin 
too early in the child's life to accomplish this great re- 
sult. (4) The Topical and Textual study of Scripture 
combined. Every Lesson in the Bible should be sug- 
gestive of some great theme, and should set the student 
at the exploration of Scripture to find what it has to say 
on that theme. 

II. Ecclesiastical. This comprises Studies — (1) 
in the Church Catechism; (2) in the Church Creed; 
(3) in the Church Economy ; (4) in Church Work; 
Missionary, etc. ; (5) in Church Hymns; (6) in Church 
History. 

III. Normal. Comprising Studies — (1) in the 
Subject-Matter we expect to teach; (2) in the Methods 
of Teaching; (3) in Practical Teaching. 

IV. Miscellaneous. The Christian Evidences, the 
History of Missions, the Relations of Science and Rev- 
elation, the various pagan Religions, etc. 

The following adjustment of the scheme was printed 
and circulated at the International Convention in 1878 : 

The Graduated Course of Study. 
I. Primary. Two Years. 

I. International Series; 2. Texts to be committed; 
3. Catechism about the Book of books ; 4. Simple out- 
lines of Bible biography and history; 5. Church Cate- 
chism ; 6. Sacred Hymns. 

II. Intermediate. Three Years. 

1. International Series; 2. Texts to be committed; 



264 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

3. Bible history and geography; 4. The Bible as a Book 
of books; 5. Church Catechism ; 6. Hymns; 7. Lessons 
on Temperance, Missionary Work, etc. , 

III. Senior. Three Years. 

1. International Series; 2. Texts to be committed; 
3. Bible history and geography; 4. Church Catechism; 
5. Hymns; 6. Church history (general and denomina- 
tional) ; 7. Missionary and Temperance. 

IV. Advanced. Fifty Years ? 

1. International Series; 2. Special Bible Classes for 
exegetical study ; 3. Lectures on Evidences, Church his- 
tory, Science, and Religion; 4. Sermons, theological; 
5. Series of text-books to be read ; 6. Normal classes. 

It may be thought that ten minutes a Sabbath will 
give too little time for any work worth attempting. Ten 
minutes a Sabbath for forty-eight Sabbaths a year, will 
give in seven years fifty-six hours of solid work on out- 
lines of Biblical knowledge. Taking five questions and 
answers a Sunday, and an average of two verses of 
Scripture memorized, we have in seven years a well- 
mastered catechism of Biblical and ecclesiastical knowl- 
edge of 1680 questions and answers, besides 672 con- 
nected verses of Scripture in the memory. 

There are objections to any and every system of 
lessons. The International system has come in for its 
share of fault-finding, and has, I have no doubt, been 
improved thereby. 

It is said that "the teaching in our Sunday school 
to-day is superficial." So it is ; but do not let us forget 
that the teachers of to-day are the products of the old, 
and not of the new, system. The seven years' course, if 
continued long enough, will lead to a profitable repeti- 



THE LESSONS. 265 

tion of the lessons, so that a child of five years entering 
the Sunday school will, at the age of twelve years, have 
gone over the Bible; at the age of nineteen will have 
gone over it twice; at the age of twenty-six will have 
three times studied the Word from Genesis to Revela- 
tion. 

It is said that by this system "we do not have enough 
formulated doctrine." But we do have God's own 
Word, the fountain of all doctrine. This is the begin- 
ning. After God's Word, man's definition to be itself 
tested and judged by God's Word. 

"The seven years' course," says a clergyman, "is a 
confusing medley. The children get 'mixed up,' so that 
even the characters of the Old and New Testaments are 
not clearly defined." It is a connected, comprehensive 
study of the whole Word. Defective teaching will con- 
fuse and mix up scholars, as defective preaching will do. 
A minister should see to it that his teachers are well 
prepared, and that they teach the lessons in their proper 
order and in the proper way. I venture to assert that 
there is less confusion in the topics of any six months' 
course of International Lessons than in the topics of 
the sermons preached by the minister who made the 
objection. 

"The lessons are not adapted to the primary class." 
Primary teachers say just the opposite of this. We have 
one text-book for all, old and young. The Bible is a 
stream where a bird may sip or an ox wade. 

"The 'Leaves' crowd out the Bible." Then don't 
use the "Leaves." They are not an essential part of 
the International system. But, in fact, Bibles are more 
used now than ever. Every "Leaf" is an advertise- 



266 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

ment of the Bible, a guide to the Bible, a part of the 
Bible. A class studying Matthew from a copy of the 
!N~ew Testament is really studying God's Word, even 
though the Books of Genesis and Malachi are missing 
from the book then in hand The student in day school 
with six books of the "Iliad" in his manual is as really 
studying Greek as though he had in hand the whole 
twenty-four books of that great Homeric poem. Did 
Jesus not preach from the Bible when, in the synagogue 
of Nazareth, "there was delivered unto Him the Book 
of the Prophet Isaiah," and He opened the book and 
found the place, and read and spake ? What was that 
old roll but a "leaf?" 

"The present lesson system discourages the memo- 
rizing of Scripture." The opposite is true. It leads to 
the study of the Bible on scientific principles. It puts 
Scripture truth into the mind as so much fact and prin- 
ciple. It requires the committing of "golden text" and 
"memory verses" every week. 

Concerning the Catechism — that stereotyped ques- 
tion-book — something should, in this connection, be 
said. The catechism is a summary of truth, arranged 
in the form of questions and answers, for purposes of 
instruction. A Bible catechism is such a summary of 
Bible truth — historical, geographical, and doctrinal. A 
church catechism is a summary of theological and ec- 
clesiastical truth, setting forth in condensed form the 
interpretation of the Bible by a particular branch of the 
church. The answers of a church catechism may be 
made up of separate Scripture texts, or compilations of 
texts, or statements in human language of the teachings 
of many texts. Such catechisms of doctrine are profit- 



TILE LESSONS. 267 

able for definition in order to full discussion and careful 
indoctrination. The use of the catechism in the in- 
struction of children is important: (1) That they may 
have a solid foundation of doctrine in their early train- 
ing; (2) that they may receive early and enduring im- 
pressions; (3) that they may have direction and as- 
sistance in studying the contents of the Bible. 

The catechism should be faithfully taught to all 
children: (1) in the family; (2) in special meetings, 
under the care of the pastor; (3) in the Sabbath school. 

There are objections to the use of catechisms. 

"They are hard to be understood." There are por- 
tions of the catechisms not easily understood, because, 
being statements of Bible truth, and dealing with in- 
finite themes, human language cannot make perfectly 
simple what the Word of God does not itself make 
simple. But this objection holds against the Bible as 
well as against the catechism. Man may know as fact 
or principle what he cannot fully explain." 

"They contain errors." Some catechisms may con- 
tain errors. The statement of the error enables the ad- 
vocates of truth to assail the false and defend the true, 
and thus the catechetical definition helps the cause of 
truth. But the proportion of errors in the catechisms of 
the Evangelical churches is very slight, and, being 
human statements, they do not have weight of divine 
authority. The use of the catechism on the whole is 
helpful, and tends to the knowledge of saving truths. 

"Catechisms prejudice children against religion." 
Certainly not, if wisely taught. One may teach any de- 
partment of human knowledge in a harsh and irrational 
way, so as to prejudice children against all learning. 



268 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

"Catechisms are likely to bias children in favor of 
particular schools of theological thought." Children 
should be by every possible influence brought into sym- 
pathy with truth. The people of positive opinions are 
the people most likely to look carefully and intelligently 
at opposite opinions. Indifference is the foe to thought. 
Then every child is bound to be biased in this life — for 
sin and error and self-indulgence, if not against it. It is 
impossible to bring too much or too strong influence in 
favor of truth and righteousness to bear upon children 
and youth. 

It would be well for pastors, parents, Sabbath-school 
superintendents and teachers to combine in an effort to 
secure the ^memorizing of the church catechism by all 
the children. Let the official and adult members of the 
church set the example and secure this desirable result. 

The International Lesson System with its inestimable 
advantages need not be abandoned to make room for 
"graded systems." It may itself be "graded," and the 
"supplemental" lessons on which it insists may be devel- 
oped to any degree of system and thoroughness desired. 



THE WEEK-DAY POWER. 269 



OHAPTEE XVI. 

THE WEEK-DAY POWER. 

Six days lie between two Sundays, and they are days 
"out in the cold/' away from the glow and grace of the 
Sunday service of song, sermon, and school. They are 
week-days, secular days, worldly days, business days — 
when the church is mostly closed, or, at best, only opened 
in the basement or lecture-room, for the select and 
saintly and the sensible, who are in the small minority 
among men. 

Though the church is shut the world is open ; and it 
is open from basement to attic. Its fires are burning, its 
aisles crowded, its seats occupied, its altars full, its 
pulpits ringing with the speech of mammon, its organs 
pouring forth ceaseless strains of its own alluring music, 
its windows ablaze with visions of glory and achieve- 
ment, and its very crypts and cloisters alive with stir 
and scheme and self. 

Against the world-church, open and busy seven days 
a week, the Christian church seems content to fire away 
from its sacred batteries once, twice, or thrice a Sunday. 
The crowds that are awake six other days (and if asleep 
on the seventh are dreaming of the coming six) do not 
go into the sanctuary on Sunday. The few go, grow 
weary soon, scold if detained over ninety minutes, and 
return home to eat and nap and wait for the next 
Sunday's round of duty. 

Literature feeds active brains seven days a week. 



270 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Science stands ready with her practical results or her 
inspiring speculations to gratify eager brains. Art 
attracts in ten thousand forms — fair and f ouL Society 
welcomes to her fascinations. Commerce awakens greed 
of gold in souls open to her power. Appetite, with bait 
and cup, stands at every corner to gorge and craze the 
impotent victim. Doubt, with sneer and scoff and bold 
defiance, scatters her alluring pages, or plays the orator 
and humorist on public platform. Indoors and out, 
in school-house, playground, street, shop, alley, field, 
parlor, and kitchen ; in theater, concert-hall, beer-garden 
— everywhere the forces are at work in the activities of 
life, and of every side of life — activities which, wisely 
directed and watched and controlled, will work good to 
society; but which, neglected, will, in spite of Sunday 
service, bring ruin to souls and communities and whole 
generations of men. 

What shall the church do with such an active, intense, 
persistent, and uncompromising world at work seven 
days a week ? 

The answer is ready : Let the church be equally active, 
intense, persistent, and uncompromising seven days a 
week. 

Play against batteries of evil with equally powerful 
batteries of good. Set vigilance against vigilance, true 
ideas against false ideas, divine against human and in- 
fernal ambitions, delight in God against delight in self 
and the world, study against study, reading against 
reading, society against society, and thus hold the 
ground, and gain and keep gaining, until, by her own 
weapons, the world is worsted, and the kingdom of truth 
established. 



THE WEEK-DAY POWER. 271 

The church must develop Christian strength and 
activity in all legitimate aims and efforts, giving her 
young people occupation for their varied powers, week- 
day as well as Sunday, at home as well as in church. 
The "Lyceum," the "Victoria Reading Circle," the 
"Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle," are efforts 
in this broad and much-needed work. They are de- 
signed to give the church a firmer hold on the young peo- 
ple within her communion; a surer grasp upon the 
young people without ; a proper influence over society ; 
a correction of taste in the matter of amusements, and 
ability to appreciate the higher things of art, science, 
literature, and life, and all this in subordination to 
Christ and His gospel. 

Our pulpit and Sunday school must teach the people 
the wholesome doctrine that, when one becomes a Chris- 
tian, he gives all his time to God. He turns over the 
possibilities of service that are in him for every hour of 
every day of every month of every year that he lives 
in the body. He belongs to God on Wednesday, in the 
rush of business ; on Saturday, in the freedom of recrea- 
tion ; in winter, when the days are short and the nights 
are long; in summer, when the days are long and the 
nights are short. He belongs to God on the working 
days and on the holidays as well as on the holy days of 
the year. There is not a minute of a Christian man's 
time that does not belong to God, and that ought not to 
be given up to Him. Eecreations that cannot be taken 
in the name of God and to His glory are not legitimate. 
Whether he studies with his brain, works with his hands, 
or devotes hours to innocent recreation for the building 
up of his body, all his time belongs to the Lord. 



272 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

When a man becomes a Christian, he gives all his 
power to God. He gives his physical power — the power 
to do with hand and foot ; he gives his intellectual power 
— his ability to read, to remember, to think, to write, to 
speak, to investigate, to teach ; he gives his moral power 
— his power of conscience, of affection, of purpose, of 
influence; he gives his professional power — -the ability 
which he possesses to work in certain lines, as farmer, 
mechanic, merchant, teacher, lawyer, physician, minis- 
ter, statesman, citizen ; he gives his peculiar power— the 
endowments which are his as distinguished from other 
men. If he have special ability in the mastery of 
natural science, in the study of history, in the use of 
his imagination, in the analysis of character, in the 
writing of books, in the preparation and delivery of 
sermons and orations, in teaching in any special branch 
of human or divine learning — all these belong to God. 

After all a man's time and all his powers are given 
to God, the surrender makes all these sacred. You may 
divide his life into secular and sacred if you will, but 
for him the secular is sacred ; all days are holy days, all 
hours are holy hours, all places are holy places; the 
spirit of heaven pervading his life makes his life — every 
part of it — a fragment of heaven. 

This consecration of all things secular does not 
diminish the necessity for special seasons of meditation 
and worship. Indeed, the influence of such seasons 
becomes the greater as it is felt over a longer period of 
time, and as it extends to a greater variety of employ- 
ments and conditions. 

He observes Sabbath days with greater strictness than 
those who do not consecrate the other six days to the 



THE WEEK-DAY POWER. 273 

Lord. He attends the church with greater frequency, 
regularity, and delight than those who put their religion 
into the Sabbath only. He sees all things in God, he 
does all things for God, he values all things according 
to the standards which God has taught him. The light 
of revelation shines on the book of science, and the life 
immortal gives luster to his earthly life. 

When one gives all his time and all his power to God> 
his life in every part of it, however secular some por- 
tions of it may seem to be, is sacred, as was the "holy of 
holies" in the Jewish tabernacle before the veil was 
rent in twain, and the sanctity and glory of the Shekinah 
extended. 

The work of God's grace in the human soul does not 
diminish either intellectual power or taste for scientific 
and literary studies. When a man devoted to philo- 
sophical, scientific, or literary pursuits surrenders him- 
self with his peculiar intellectual tastes and endowments 
to the service of God, these pursuits do not lose their 
charm. The Christian geologist loves geology; the 
Christian astronomer rejoices in the heavens that "de- 
clare the glory of God;" the biologist sees a divinely 
given life in plant and animal; the student of human 
nature and of philosophy still pursues with unabated 
delight his investigations in the history of ancient and 
modern times, and in the phenomena and laws of being. 

All this is right. It is right for a Christian man to 
be a student. He ought to know ; he ought to improve ; 
he ought to take delight in intellectual growth, and find 
time for reading and research. 

The young man in his college course may serve God 
as faithfully as a preacher in the discharge of his purely 
18 



274 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

professional duties. He may study Livy, Herodotus, 
Virgil, Homer, Horace, with pure motives, and in these 
studies find opportunity for developing mental and 
moral strength. Indeed, a college-boy cannot get the 
best results of his college curriculum unless he does 
thus study with a sanctified aim. 

Our grammar and high school pupils ought to be 
actuated by such religious convictions in all their 
studies. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wis- 
dom/' There is a depth of educational philosophy in 
this inspired statement. Our young people ought to be 
trained from the beginning to make use of educational 
advantages as religious opportunities. They should be 
guarded against the idea that study in the public school 
and the reading of papers and books through the week 
are purely secular, with no religious aim and power in 
them. They should be guarded against confining all 
religious inspirations and aims to Sabbath hours and 
Sabbath services. There should be no break between 
Sabbaths. The cable of divine influence should stretch 
through the seven days, sending out wires to touch with 
their divine charm every hour of every day. 

What is true of study is also true of worldly labor. 
Kitchen work, shop work, farm work, as well as school 
work, are divine duties ; they hide pearls in their rough 
shells ; they are means of discipline in the highest quali- 
ties of character. Through the faithful discharge of 
such plain duties come some of the sweetest and mighti- 
est energies from the heavens. The young convert 
should be guarded against the fearful heresy, that when 
he leaves the hour of song and prayer and revival power, 
and goes to his homely service in the shop or field, he is 



THE WEEK-DAY POWER. 275 

imperiling his spiritual life by leaving the place where 
spiritual power especially belongs. Honest service for 
God, with pure motives and the spirit of prayer in the 
lowliest places, is a means of grace, without which, as 
collateral and supplementary agencies, devotional hours 
are absolutely worthless. 

It becomes the duty, then, of every religious teacher 
to show the young Christian that all his time, all his 
power, all his studies, all his work, are to be consecrated 
to God ; that such consecration makes them religious. 

And this opens a world of opportunity and of re- 
sponsibility before the Christian minister. 

The minister of the gospel, therefore, is the true edu- 
cator. The church is the true school. When it secures 
the consecration of a life with all its power to God, the 
responsibility of the church begins anew, for the train- 
ing that life in all its relations and possibilities into a 
symmetrical growth. 

The church must win souls to Christ ; that is, to this 
spirit of entire consecration of all things to the service 
of Christ. The church must edify by the divine Spirit 
through the divine promises the souls thus committed 
by hearty consecration to its care. 

The church must, therefore, direct its converts in all 
the affairs of life, showing them the relations between 
the Christian spirit and everyday service in school, shop, 
kitchen, field, street, parlor. 

The church should see that its members, who are 
already in business, carry their religion into business; 
that its citizens, as such, carry their religion into poli- 
tics ; that its students carry their religion into the school 
and the college. 



276 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

The church should also see that no branch of Chris- 
tian activity and personal culture is being neglected by 
its members, Students in school should not neglect 
practical duties at home — the helping of father and 
mother. Business men should not neglect politics. 
Citizens, mechanics, housekeepers, farmers, occupied 
with their various lines, should not neglect education. 
The ploughboy who has intellect is bound by every con- 
sideration to cultivate it. The mother, whose children 
are growing up about her, although she be busy with 
domestic cares, has no right to neglect intellectual im- 
provement that she may be the better qualified to fulfil 
the mother's duty. Young people on farms and in 
shops, who did not have educational privileges in child- 
hood, should feel their responsibility for education, for 
true literary taste, and for the improvement of their 
mental powers. 

Such symmetrical, far-reaching work increases great- 
ly the responsibility of the Christian pastorate. It 
opens many doors of influence. It makes the pastor 
supervisor over all the affairs of his people in the wise 
and courteous ways which refinement, zeal, and wisdom 
will suggest. 

It is in pursuance of this true theory of the Christian 
life that I commend the cultivation by the church of 
week-day power, by diligent and faithful visitation of 
the homes of the scholars ; by the circulation of books, 
religious and secular, under the direction of the church ; 
by special meetings on week-evenings, in which the 
ministries of music, art, science, and literature are 
secured in subordination to religious aims and uses; 
and by the organization and management of educational 



THE WEEK-DAY POWER. 277 

societies and circles, such as those to which I have 
already alluded. 

Ministers should preach and lecture to their congre- 
gations on such topics as the following: "The peculiar 
perils from modern society to which our young people 
are exposed ;" "The necessity of consecrating the intel- 
lect to God;" "The Christian's inheritance in science, 
literature, and art" (a good text would be: "All things 
are yours ;" or, "Whatsoever things are true . . . think 
on these things") ; "The study of divine Providence in 
human history ;" "The value of human learning in the 
preservation and translation of the Holy Scriptures;" 
"The recreative power for an earnest man in literature, 
science, and art ;" "The increase of personal power by a 
higher culture ;" "The pleasures of science." 

Ministers should organize classes in science and 
history, in art and in general literature, in grammar 
and conversation, and invite to them the young people, 
who need such provisions. Of course the minister 
cannot add the details of work which this suggestion 
implies to his already busy life, but he can induce some 
other church-people to do the work, or to give the means 
by which he can secure talent competent to direct and 
teach. 

Reading circles may be organized under church aus- 
pices ; circles in history, in the literature of a people or 
of a period; circles whose individual members agree to 
read so many minutes a day — ten, twenty, forty — in 
useful and specified lines. A habit of reading good 
books on the part of a young man may not only give an 
impulse to power otherwise dormant, but may develop 
gifts which will increase his value to society and the 



278 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

church a hundred per cent. A taste for good reading 
formed by a mother may result in sending her children 
to school ten years longer than they would have 
dreamed of going. 

The "Victoria Reading Circle/' which was estab- 
lished in London, in 1887, under the auspices of the 
London Sunday School Union, and the "Chautauqua 
Literary and Scientific Circle/' on the basis of which 
it operates, are both designed to enlist the influence of 
the church in literary and educational spheres, and thus 
utilize legitimate secular forces in church life. In the 
Appendix may be found a full account of these organi- 
zations. 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 279 



CHAPTER XVII. 

THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

I have a few things to say about country Sunday 
schools. The one distinctive feature of these schools is 
that they are located in the country. Whatever disad- 
vantages their managers may experience are traceable 
to this simple fact. A superintendent from an inland 
city, when addressing an audience in the great metropo- 
lis, represents himself as "from the country." I do not 
at this writing propose to discuss country city Sunday 
schools, which have in reality no embarrassments that 
are peculiar to themselves. Nor am I speaking of the 
schools in our large towns ; for although these towns are 
less compactly built, and are not so well supplied with 
pavements as the larger cities, their schools find no 
difficulty in maintaining themselves in all seasons and 
through all weathers. 

In the thinly settled neighborhoods, in farming 
regions, in straggling villages, the real country Sunday 
school has its existence; where, in snowy weather, in 
rainy weather, in extremely cold weather, and in thaw- 
ing weather, it becomes exceedingly difficult, nay, al- 
most impossible at times, to travel any distance on foot. 
The people who form the Christian congregation in such 
a section as this live from one to five miles from the 
school-house or chapel, and many of them must walk 
every step of the way if they attend church service 
at all. 



280 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL,. 

In such neighborhoods it is not unusual to close 
Sabbath school during six weeks or more of winter, just 
as in the city certain Sunday schools are closed for six 
weeks or more during the hot season. What the cold 
does for the country the heat does for the city, so that 
crimination in either case is exceedingly unbecoming. 

The old argument based upon the maintenance of 
the secular district school in the rural neighborhoods 
during the entire winter is thus answered by the country 
brethren: Our churches, or the school-houses in which 
our religious service is held, are not as near to us as the 
school-house our children attend during the week. 
Many families must pass two district school-houses on 
Sabbath to reach the place of church service in the 
country. Boys and girls roughly clad may easily 
enough walk half a mile or more on Monday to reach 
the school-house, who find it less agreeable to walk two 
or three miles in better clothes over muddy roads on 
Sunday. Horses ? The farmer believes in at least one 
day of rest out of the seven for his horses, or, if the 
horses are used once on Sabbath to convey the family to 
church, this is enough. Again, to attend two services 
a day so far from home when the days are so short, and 
the "chores" of a large farm are to be done morning and 
evening, is almost impossible. 

The irregularity of church services in country neigh- 
borhoods is another serious obstacle. Preaching is 
aiforded in many of these places only once or twice a 
month, and this, perhaps, at the very hour most appro- 
priate to the Sunday-school session. The frequent in- 
terruption seems to justify the brief suspension for the 
winter. 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 281 

It is often the case that the moneyed men of a 
community, whose children have formed social ties in 
adjoining towns, find it pleasant to ride thither on 
Sabbaths to enjoy the comforts of well-appointed sanc- 
tuaries and the advantages of a more cultivated society 
than the country neighborhood affords. The children, 
perhaps, identify themselves with a morning or noon 
Sunday school in town. What time has such a family 
to give to the maintenance of a country school ? What 
interest will they take in it ? 

A strong denominational feeling too often prevails 
in country neighborhoods. Rivalries find place there 
which are disastrous to spiritual success. Unable to 
maintain a denominational school, and unwilling to 
affiliate with those whose slightly larger influence gives 
the administration into "unfriendly" hands, our strong 
denominationalist withdraws entirely, and we have rea- 
son to know that in more than one neighborhood Sunday 
schools do not exist at all because they cannot be exclu- 
sively Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, nor yet gen- 
uinely "Union." This state of things in many places not 
only gives the winter's frost a keener edge, and deepens 
the mud of the country highway, but affords a very 
convenient excuse for closing the school altogether until 
the genial warmth of summer and the personal devotion 
of some disciple of Christ almost compel a new en- 
deavor. And in spite of the inharmony some good is 
done, and in many cases, thank God ! the persistent labor 
of a few patient Christians is instrumental in bringing 
blessed baptisms of conviction and light and charity 
from the Lord. 

To the difficulties encountered in the management 



282 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

of country schools which I have already stated, may be 
added the following : The indifference and scepticism of 
so large a part of our country population, with whom it 
is a small matter whether their children go to school 
or not : the want of convenient, commodious, and well- 
appointed rooms; the lack of teachers; the want of a 
just appreciation on the part of the people of the Sun- 
day-school work, and a consequent failure to give the in- 
stitution a liberal financial support. I can think of 
other embarrassments. I have named enough to show 
that the work in the country is to be prosecuted in the 
face of serious difficulties. He is a brave man who 
keeps a steady hold of the institution and pushes it on 
from January to December. 

May I offer a few words of exhortation? Whoever 
you may be already in charge of a country school, or 
projecting the organization of one, remember that one 
consecrated heart can stir up a whole neighborhood. 
The one great need of any country Sunday school is an 
earnest leader. He will attract to himself the heart of 
every child. This will win every parent. Earnest, in- 
defatigable love can keep up a Sunday school under the 
most inauspicious circumstances. The magnet, in spite 
of wind and wave, and blackness and tempest, points 
steadily toward the pole. A force silently woos it from 
afar, and it trembles thitherward in responsive longing. 
So woos true Christly love ; and this may throb in your 
heart, brother or sister, and win childhood and age from 
neglectful homes to the school, the sanctuary, the 
Saviour. 

Remember that to be a successful Sunday school 
yours need not be a large school. Ten pupils and two 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 283 

teachers may have a session full of enthusiasm and 
profit. Instead of expending your zeal in futile en- 
deavors after large accessions to your numbers, make the 
school itself so profitable and instructive that every 
pupil shall of his own accord become an earnest mission- 
ary, and from personal asurance of its value persuade 
his fellows to join your ranks. 

Emphasize Bible study. This is the one great means 
by which the Sunday school is to benefit any community. 
Resolve, therefore, that your Sunday school, however 
small it may be, shall be a Bible school. I commend 
to your notice the uniform lesson. Its use is as prac- 
ticable in the country as in the city. 

Fill the country with Sunday schools. Let highways 
and hedges, fields and forests, bloom with the truth and 
grace of the gospel. If you can do no more, establish 
family Sunday schools.* 

If it can be done without violence to Christian- 
courtesy and charity, let your school be denominational. 
This is the better form for a Sunday school, but not 
always practicable. As the union school will sooner or 
later become denominational, it is a saving of time to 
begin as a regular church school. But where you cannot 
do as you would, go heartily into the union effort. And 
do not be too solicitous about securing advantages, for 
your own branch of God's great church-family, nor too 
sensitive to slights and neglects, which some strong 
partisan or sectarian of narrow measure may mete out 
to you. When certain Athenian messengers brought an 
insulting message to Philip of Macedon, their conqueror 
and king, he replied, "Tell the Athenian king that it is 

* See page 29. 



284: THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

worse to speak such things than to hear and forgive 
them." Be magnanimous, and if you cannot have what 
you want, do the best you can with what you have. Be 
generous yourself, even if others are ungenerously secta- 
rian. Yield gracefully to the majority, and work as 
diligently and fight as valiantly under the accepted 
banner as you would under your own. This is the wiser, 
better, nobler way. It is often the case that the denomi- 
national school loses its right of possession by suspension 
through the winter. Early in the spring some union 
agent slips in betimes and starts a union school. Are we 
right in thinking that any school by closing up for the 
winter forfeits its claim upon public favor, and deserves 
some such rebuke ? 

In organizing your school let everything be done 
openly, and after fair and full notice. Don't "election- 
eer." Pray much for divine direction. Insist upon the 
selection of superintendent and other officers by adults 
and not by children. Let the key-note of your school be 
"Bible study for spiritual edification. Then organize 
with this aim before you, and select officers and teachers 
who love, and are to some extent qualified, to teach the 
Word. Elect as few officers as possible. Put all your 
force into the main work as pupils or teachers. Be sure 
to get a superintendent whose heart is in the right place. 
Get a man of as much talent as possible, but exalt grace 
above genius. It is surprising how much one talent can 
do in Sunday-school work. Because you cannot have a 
Wells or a Reynolds, be satisfied if you find a man in 
whom Jesus dwells, and who loves the Word of God and 
the souls of the people. Remember that all questions of 
organization are of minor importance. Don't be stick- 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 285 

lers for particular modes. Whatever constitution, plan, 
rules of order, may be adopted, carry them out faith- 
fully. I think that a very few simple regulations are 
sufficient for the management of a Sunday school, and, 
when once adopted by the majority of teachers let them 
be tenaciously observed by all. 

Your Sunday-school room is not like St. John's in 
Brooklyn, Grace Mission in ISTew York, Bethany in 
Philadelphia, or the model schoolroom of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church in Akron, O. Yours is either a small 
church with no class-rooms, or a country school-house of 
the plainest style. You have no railroad seat to turn 
over, no cane-bottomed chairs to arrange, no double 
doors to close, no fountain with its gold fish and water- 
lilies, no frescoed walls, no stained-glass windows, no 
organ, no carpets. Yours is but a plain, soiled, dusty, 
web-hung country school-house, very rough, very in- 
convenient. We have often been in just such rooms, 
and what glorious times we have had there ! All this 
matter of apparatus and ornament is of minor impor- 
tance. Of some importance it is, and so we suggest the 
appointment of a "Committee on the Room." How 
long, think you, will it take a bevy of smart country girls 
to convert a rude school-house into a rustic palace, 
fresher and fairer far than the majority of our city 
basements ? Here are arms and fingers that fear neither 
soap nor scrubbing-brush. Here are taste and strength 
to make windows shine, exchange for folds of spider- 
webs festoons of evergreens, suspend against bare walls 
wreaths and anchors and crosses of laurel and hemlock, 
and place on the superintendent's desk every Saturday 
evening bouquets of flowers to fill the place with fra- 



286 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

grance for the day of the Lord. Cleanliness and comeli- 
ness, even to the point of elegance, are possible in our 
roughest and most rural school-houses. I do not say 
that these things are necessary. Far from it. I do say, 
for I do believe, that these things have a mission not to 
be despised ; and I congratulate the school whose super- 
intendent and teachers have enterprise, taste, and skill 
enough to give the ministry of the beautiful a place 
in their Sunday-school work. As compared with Bible 
study, these adornments are but as the velvet case to the 
costly diamond cluster it contains. 

True, in your school-house the infant class has no 
room by itself. But it can have a corner. If its teacher 
has the tithe of a mother's tact, she will drill her ten or 
twenty little lispers by softly uttered responses and 
"whisper songs" so as to disturb no one else. Why may 
not a temporary blackboard shield her from the rest of 
the school, and afford at the same time a surface on 
which to draw rude letters, sketches and maps, to the 
perfect delight of her pupils ? 

I know also that in your little school-houses the 
classes are of necessity placed very close together. But 
patient effort on the part of your superintendent will 
soon accustom each to speak in recitation so quietly that 
a partition will really separate the classes, and give each 
an opportunity to prosecute its studies without inter- 
ruption. 

If you wish to know about cheap maps for your 
school, blackboards, the new Silicate Librarians' "Rec- 
ord," library books, a lesson system for three, six, nine, 
or twelve months, or anything else relating to the work, 
address a note of inquiry to the editor of any Sunday- 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 287 

school paper. A little labor and a little money wisely 
expended will give the most unfavorably situated coun- 
try Sunday school a new life and new facilities for use- 
fulness. 

The hour of meeting must be determined by each 
locality for itself. When there is one preaching service, 
the school will usually be held either immediately before 
or after it, that the families may be saved the trouble 
and fatigue of a second journey. In New England it is 
very common to place the Sunday school between two 
sermons. The noon hour, between morning and after- 
noon preaching, is devoted to this purpose, and the 
school fits in like a thin slice of tongue between two 
halves of a buttered biscuit. The mass of the people, 
however, regard it rather as a piece of thin paper be- 
tween two slices of jelly cake — the latter to be eaten and 
relished, the other to be thrown away. I hope that very 
soon the three services will be rearranged, so that an 
hour and a quarter may be devoted by old and young to 
Bible study, with accompanying religious worship, and 
that then, after a brief intermission, the same persons 
may be assembled to join again in worship, and hear 
God's Word preached from the pulpit. The present 
form of public worship is not in its details so divinely 
ordained that it will be improper or injurious to change 
it, and we may soon look for such modifications as will 
give to the school the place it deserves in the Sabbath 
services. 

But while the time is limited to forty-five minutes or 
extended to seventy-five, let our country friends resolve 
to make the most of what they have. Don't fritter away 
one-half or three-fourths of it in opening exercises, ex- 



288 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

changing books, collecting money, or in hearing some 
itinerant religious life insurance agent "speak his 
piece." Go directly to work, and secure at least thirty 
or thirty-five minutes of solid study out of the time 
assigned. 

The order of exercises should be left in the hands of 
the superintendent, who, if he be fit for his position, will 
cheerfully receive suggestions from the teachers, and, as 
far as possible, comply with their wishes in all matters 
of management. I may suggest, in reference to the 
"order of exercises," that the "exercises" are far more 
important than the "order." A self-possessed, prompt, 
firm, kind, calm superintendent will secure "quiet" 
whenever he wishes it, and all will cheerfully yield to 
his direction. Give more time to Bible study than to 
anything else, and allow no interruption while that is 
the order of the day. A high wall, impenetrable and 
insurmountable, should guard the school during that 
part of its session against librarian, missionary collec- 
tors, secretary, visitors, and other interlopers. 

The main work in the country, as in the city school, 
is Bible study. Therefore the main point is live teach- 
ers. The ablest scholars are not always the ablest 
teachers. Profound learning is desirable, but not indis- 
pensable, in this work of teaching God's truth. There- 
fore I say to country superintendents, Take the best and 
most devoted people you have, learned or unlearned, and 
enlist their hearts in the service. Then give them tracts 
and books to read. With earnest, studious teachers you 
will soon have a successful Sunday school. Give, there- 
fore, the largest measure of attention to this part of the 
work. 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 289 

During the week do something for the Sunday school. 
Have an occasional sociable, inviting old and young to 
attend it. Spend half an hour or more in some Bible 
exercise. Look over the lesson for next Sabbath, or take 
up the geography of Palestine, drill the meeting on the 
mountains, waters, plains, and cities of the Bible world. 
Sing a great deal. Have one or two brief prayers. If 
the pastor is unable to be at your school on Sabbath, 
owing to the demands of his work, let him make use of 
this week-evening meeting. 

I reiterate my solemn conviction that the question of 
success in country Sunday-school work is not one of 
organization and appliances, but of enthusiasm; not of 
art, but of heart. There are in this labor no barriers 
that a true zeal cannot overleap. Make every summer, 
dear brethren of the country, a golden summer to you by 
faithful Sunday-school work, and may you gather many 
and large and heavily freighted sheaves for Christ ! 

Let me discuss the question of suspension during the 
winter. I appreciate the difficulties which our fellow- 
laborers in the country encounter. I have conversed 
freely on the subject with many of these brethren. I 
have lived for several years in the country. I have 
thought carefully over the usual objections to winter 
sessions — bad weather, bad roads, "chores" to be done 
about house and barn, plain clothes (a second or Sunday 
suit made of light and cheap material being possible in 
summer to the poorest boy, while a winter Sunday suit 
costs three times as much), short days, other meetings, 
distance, etc., etc. These, and all conceivable argu- 
ments on that side of the question, while they show the 
embarrassments of country workers, do not amount to a 
19 



290 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

justification of the prevailing habit of closing the Sun- 
day school for from three to five months every year. In 
spite of them all, I believe in fifty-two Sunday-school 
sessions every twelve months, and intend, in all humil- 
ity and in the fear of God, to protest against the unwise 
policy of withdrawing so large a portion of the Sunday- 
school army every year from the field, and giving to the 
great enemy of souls an advantage so grateful to him, 
and so gratuitous, unnecessary, and culpable on our 
part. 

If Sunday schools are not practically valuable, let 
them go. Whether stalled by the mud, frozen by the 
cold, melted by the heat, or drowned by the rain, mat- 
ters little. But if thus worthless, why hold them for 
five or six months in spring and summer ? 

If Sunday school is needed for one Sunday and the 
week it represents, I know no peculiarities of any Sun- 
day which would justify its omission. The soul that 
lives by "every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of 
God" needs regular supplies of truth. God's Word is 
as necessary to the development of God's grace in the 
heart in January as in July. The Berean believers of 
Paul's day "searched the Scriptures daily." Souls are 
choosing for God or against God all the year round. 
"Be ye also ready," we find remaining as the Word of 
God from January to December again. Men sicken 
and die in all seasons. In fact, there is no special sea- 
son to the Christian worker. Says Paul to Timothy, 
"Be instant in season and out of season." And is the 
Bible so small a book, so easily fathomed, or so simple, 
that half a dozen summer sessions will suffice to explore 
and master its contents % It is true, as you say, to some 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 291 

extent, "We can study the Bible at home." But why, 
then, have Sunday school at any time ? You may also 
read sermons and pray at home, and thus avoid the 
fatigue of attending the prayer-meeting, and save your- 
selves the expense of a preacher. 

The unwisdom of the policy I deprecate is the more 
apparent when we consider the peculiar social perils of 
the winter. Satan never suspends his operations be- 
cause of the cold or storm. Winter is the special season 
for gay, dissipating parties with their dances, or coarse 
and equally demoralizing "plays." On the winter days, 
when but little farm work can be done, and on the long 
winter nights, that drive men indoors by the side of 
warm fires, does not Satan see to it that groggeries are 
open, and that beer, whisky, cards, coarse stories and 
ribald songs are supplied to beguile and degrade the 
weak and unwary ? When do the people more need the 
Sunday school with its Scriptural warnings, instruct 
tions, and quickenings ? 

Winter is the season of special opportunity. The 
evening school, the singing school, the lyceum debate, 
the spelling match, the lecture course, the church soci- 
able, the protracted meetings, the public school, the great 
parties and balls, the entertainments in hall and church, 
all these seem to flourish best in mid-winter. Why, 
then, should the Sunday school die? "If its sessions 
were held in the evening it would be different." Then, 
I answer, hold its sessions in the evening. "But the 
very little children could not attend." I am sure of the 
contrary ; and yet I do not know but it would be better 
to run the risk of their non-attendance for a time, if 
by the proposed argument a larger number of young 



292 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

people and adults could be brought together for the 
study of the Word of God. The evening session is not 
indispensable. But somehow, at some time, in some 
way, the Sunday school must be kept up. 

The public school is always open in winter in country 
places, answering to some extent the arguments against 
winter Sunday schools, by showing how entirely prac- 
ticable it is for children to leave home in spite of mud, 
snow, and cold. But there is another phase of the pub- 
lic school which weighs heavily in favor of winter Sun- 
day schools. The intellectual effort of young people put 
forth in preparing for daily recitations, the casual con- 
tact with the great facts and problems of history and 
human experience which school habits occasion — these 
quicken intellects otherwise dormant, and render stu- 
dents especially susceptible to the truth. At no time 
in the year are young people in the country so intel- 
lectually impressible, at no season are their minds more 
clear and vigorous, at no season are they more exposed 
to the temptations of scepticism, than in winter. At 
the very time when all the consecrated culture we have 
in the church should be responding through Sunday- 
school teaching to the intellectual awakening of our 
youth, the school is closed, the teachers are silent, the 
Bible is unopened. The keen, inquiring, penetrating 
brain of the boy turns from the text-book of science and 
asks about the Maker of all these marvels in nature. He 
finds the church school closed. And why ? "It's winter." 

But I do injustice to the church of Christ in this 
putting of the case. The church is not closed. In 
winter it is usually open of tener than in summer. 

The protracted meetings are held chiefly during the 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 293 

autumn and winter: In some communities it is cus- 
tomary to hold a special meeting every winter, even 
though the Sunday school closes, concerning which I 
remark — 1. That the attendance upon such special 
meetings in the dead of winter, and in most unpropi- 
tious weathers, only proves that "where there's a will 
there's a way." The same degree of zeal in Sunday- 
school work would overcome every obstacle. 2. That 
the results of a protracted meeting "revival" would be 
intensified and extended w 7 ere its special meetings of 
prayer, consecration, and preaching supplemented by 
thorough class studies in the Word of God, which is 
able to "build up" and "sanctify" believers. The study 
of divine truth and effort for others are the two things 
which young converts most need, and these are the 
things most effectively accomplished by the Sunday 
school. The suspension of this service, therefore, in 
winter exposes the young Christians to immense loss. 
3. While it is common to hold these protracted meetings 
every season, there remain very many places wHere the 
people suspend their school, and yet enjoy no advantage 
from revival meetings. Doubly culpable are those min- 
isters and superintendents who, in such communities, 
allow the Sunday school to close in the autumn. 

Let me plead, dear reader, for the continuance of the 
country schools for autumn and winter. Try the ex- 
periment. Foil the arch-foe of our faith. Keep the 
school up and the Word open. Let not the devil gain 
any advantage by the relaxing of Christian endeavor. 

Of all the excuses for giving up Sunday school in 
winter which an artful devil ever put into Christian 
lips, the cry of "old clothes" is the silliest and shabbiest. 



294 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

~No more tattered garment ever hung over an excuseless 
sin. Show me the neighborhood where people say, "We 
cannot afford decent clothes, therefore we cannot go to 
Sunday school/' Place one earnest soul in that town- 
ship. He visits, distributes tracts, prays, pleads with 
the people ; through his labors the divine Spirit awakens 
religious concern among the people. He preaches the 
law and then the gospel. The people turn out. Souls 
are forward for prayers. Believers are in an agony of 
earnest longing. It is mid-winter. The snow is a foot 
deep on the level, the drifted roads are well-nigh impass- 
able, yet the little school-house is crowded. Sleighs and 
sleds, foot-passengers with shovels swung over their 
shoulders, mothers with children in their arms, all wend 
their way, in defiance of snow and wind and frost, to the 
place where God has manifested Himself to His people. 
On Sunday, from early morning till ten o'clock at night, 
the school-house is full. Service after service is held. 
Miles dwindle into rods. "Chores" were never so rapid- 
ly despatched. Clothes! Who thinks of seedy coat, 
patched trousers, dented hat ? On Saturday night the 
swift needle, the stout clothes-brush, the hot flat-iron, 
soon repair, dust out, and press down a ragged week-day 
garment until it looks "almost as good as new," and its 
glad wearer, gladdened with the zeal and joy of the 
"new life," never gives a thought all that jubilant Sab- 
bath day to the plain, patched garb his body wears. 

Ah, dear brethren, "where there's a will there's a 
way." When the heart is in a work it tears away in 
the twinkle of an eye all these cobweb apologies and ex- 
cuses for apathy and lukewarmness. We close Sunday 
school in winter because we do not love souls; because 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 295 

we do not love Christ; because we are half-hearted, and 
care more for our ease than for our Master s kingdom. 
This is a fact. Why not put it in plain words ? And 
the saddest fact of all is, that when people of the world 
excuse themselves from Sunday school and church on the 
flimsy ground of inability to "dress well enough," we at 
once indorse the sentiment, cover ourselves with it as with 
a mantle of self -justification, and, closing up the school on 
Sabbath, write on our conscience these weak and wicked 
words : "The poor are so poor they cannot come, and we 
acknowledge the justice and propriety of their excuses." 

There are other excuses on the tongue's end of all 
who loathe labor in the Lord's vineyard. They say, 
"But few would come out." Of this I am not sure ; but 
then a few are worth working for. There were but 
a few young men in Oxford who studied their Greek 
Testaments weekly with the vow of service upon them ; 
but the few became millions. Jesus in the night labored 
with one JSficodemus. In the heat and hunger of the 
day He talked with one woman of Samaria. He found 
in the lowly service "meat" that His disciples knew not 
of. It is equally incomprehensible to many of His so- 
called disciples to-day. "We have no teachers." One 
earnest soul loving the Word and loving souls may so 
teach that Word to many as to make it profitable. 'No 
teachers? Have you no Christians among you? Is 
there not one? "We lack the funds." Do you lack 
equally the spirit of self-denial ? 

We know how difficult it is to raise money in many 
country places for Sunday-school work. But the "will" 
hews out the "way." Take the "cheap" cigars one of 
your number smokes. They cost only three cents apiece. 



296 THE MODEEJN" SUNDAY SCHOOL, 

He smokes only one a day, including Sunday. Nearly 
eleven dollars a year ! That is all. But five men, each 
smoking or chewing eleven dollars a year, consume on 
their appetites, and to the damage of body, brain, and 
heart, only fifty-five dollars a year! And all this is in 
neighborhoods where people are too poor to dress decent- 
ly, and far too poor to provide reading matter for a 
Sunday school. What will the Master say when the 
"judgment is set and the books are opened i" 

It is common to answer remonstrance by remon- 
strance. The city cries aloud to the country, and re- 
ceives an echoing rebuke: "If country Sunday schools 
do close in winter, the city schools also close in summer." 

These lines are not written from the city standpoint, 
nor are they intended to be the voice of the city in any 
sense. Personally, I have lived in the country and 
preached in the country enough to understand its needs, 
its embarrassments and advantages. I write earnestly 
because I feel keenly the importance of the question. I 
write plainly because I wish its importance to be fully 
felt by those who must personally grapple with it. But 
I have a word or two in this place to say concerning the 
custom of closing Sunday schools in the city during the 
summer — a word of condemnation and a word of ex- 
tenuation. I think that clergymen and most students 
and business men of intellectual and sedentary habits 
need a few weeks' relaxation in the summer. In 
securing this, most of the wealthy church members are 
"out of town" for some time. The superintendent goes ; 
the chief teachers go ; many of the scholars go. So the 
authorities close the school. Just so far as this arrange- 
ment prevents people from attending the public service 



THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 297 

and the Sabbath school it is harmful. Those who travel 
are, of course, permitted to attend service every Sab- 
bath. Now, such is the proximity of churches in all 
cities, and such the summer arrangements, that, al- 
though one or two churches may be temporarily closed 
in the neighborhood, there is always one, and generally 
more, within easy reach where preaching may be heard, 
and where the Sabbath school is held twice a day. The 
schools that close are aware of this, and it is customary 
for departing pastors and superintendents to exhort those 
of their flocks who must remain in town to attend one 
of the neighboring churches and schools. So that, in 
fact, the city Sunday schools do not at any time close in 
such a way as to leave city people without opportunity 
for regular Sunday-school service every Lord's day. 

These words have been written in love, and with a 
profound anxiety to so write them that, while they could 
give no offence by undue plainness, they might be so 
plain and direct that they could not be misunderstood. 

Methodists hold class-meetings. They are intended 
to be, and almost invariably are, "means of grace." A 
brother minister writes as follows : 

"I have been preaching and working in the Sabbath 
school a great many years on circuits in country places. 
I have tried hard to keep up the schools in winter. I 
am very glad you are treating the subject in the Sunday- 
school Journal, and so well thus far, but I have an ob- 
jection for you to answer. In many places the Sabbath 
school must be held immediately after the morning ser- 
mon, but that entirely prevents all class-meetings, as they 
can only be held at that hour. To me this is the greatest 
objection to winter Sabbath schools in the country." 



298 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

But why an objection to "winter Sabbath schools?" 
Does not the difficulty exist just as much in summer ? 
]STow, there are two or three methods which I should 
adopt or test before abandoning either the class-meeting 
or the Sunday school. 

1. I should plead for a morning session of the Sunday 
school. But the country will say, "It is too early for the 
people, and especially for the children, to get out." 

2. I should then plead for a later preaching hour, 
say, Sunday school at 10 a. m. ; preaching at 11.15; 
class-meeting at 12.30. 

3. If both classes and Sunday school must meet at 
the same time, I should recognize the class-meeting as a 
good Sunday-school class, and its leader as a Sunday- 
school teacher. I should recognize the Sunday-school 
classes as class-meetings, and their teachers as leaders. 
I should uphold both institutions. If I needed a teacher 
for one class, I should feel free to take him out of an- 
other where he had been a scholar. If I needed a devout 
class-member for a Sunday-school teacher, I should lay 
hold of him, feeling that I was virtually making a class- 
leader of him, and thus promoting him. 

4. If we were compelled to meet at the same hour, 
and had but one room in the church for all purposes, I 
should borrow a neighbor's kitchen or parlor for the 
class-meeting. 

I do firmly believe that when Christians rightly 
estimate the Sunday school, and Sunday-school workers 
truly appreciate the class-meeting, there will prevail a 
spirit of confidence, concession, and co-operation before 
which every difficulty will vanish. 



APPENDIX A. 299 



APPENDIX A. 

PUBLIC RECEPTION OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL TEACHERS. 

The church should extend its hand of welcome to the man who 
consecrates his gifts to the work of teaching in the Sabbath school. 
A word of counsel and encouragement at that important stage may 
have a most salutary effect upon his future career. The pub- 
lic recognition would favorably impress the church itself, and give 
the teacher increased power over his scholars. This course has 
been adopted in several schools already, and many years ago I pre- 
sented the following plan for the public reception or installation of 
teachers : 

1. Let the school, or the school and congregation, unite in reading 
responsively with the pastor Psalm cxix. 1-16. 

2. During the singing of the following hymn the persons to be 
received may come forward : 

Christ our Example. C. M. 
Tune — Balerma. 

Son of the living God ! receive 

This humble work of mine ; 
Worth to my meanest labor give, 

By joining it to thine. 

Servant of all ! to toil for man 
Thou wouldst not, Lord, refuse ; 

Thy majesty did not disdain 
To be employed for us. 

Thy bright example I pursue ; 

To Thee in all things rise ; 
And all I think, or speak, or do, 

Is but one sacrifice. 

3. Prayer. 

4. Remarks by the pastor or superintendent, or both, on the 
Sunday-school teacher's work, and the need of the Holy Spirit in 
order to success. 

5. Scripture readings : 



300 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

(1) By the pastor: Rom. xii. 1-8. 

(2) By the superintendent : 1 Cor. xii. 27-31. 

(3) By the school and pastor or superintendent, responsively : 
Eph. iv. 1-16. 

6. The following hymn may then be sung : 

The Scriptures. L. M. 

Unto our inner man expound 
The things in all Thy Scriptures found 
Concerning Thee, that we in turn 
May make Thy lambs the same discern. 

Instructed thus by Thee, O Lord ! 
Our souls shall prosper in Thy Word ; 
Apt teachers in our school to shine, 
Apt scholars must we be in Thine. 

7. The following questions may then be asked : 

(1) Do you believe that the Holy Scriptures were given by in- 
spiration of God, and that therein we find all things necessary to 
salvation? 

(2) Do you believe that the study of the Holy Scriptures, with a 
view to spiritual edification, is the chief and all-important aim of 
the Sabbath school? 

(3) Will you endeavor faithfully, as a Sunday-school teacher, 
to instruct your scholars in the Word of God? 

8. The following covenant may then be made, all teachers and 
officers present, who desire to do so, uniting with the candidates 
in its audible repetition. 

Covenant. 

"I do solemnly promise to devote myself, with all diligence, to 
Sunday-school labor. I will endeavor to study the Word of God 
thoroughly and prayerfully ; to spend as much time as possible in 
reading, meditation, and prayer, with special reference to my 
work ; as regularly as possible to attend all the means of grace ; to 
visit my scholars as their temporal or spiritual necessities may 
require, and to be punctually present at school and all meetings of 
teachers." 



APPENDIX A. 301 

9. The Teacher's Consecration Hymn may then be sung : 
Tune — Dennis. 

Father, my spirit search ; 

Reveal my needs to me, 
As now, a teacher in thy church, 

I give myself to Thee. 

Teach me to love Thy Word, 

Teach me to do Thy will ; 
With earnest labors for my Lord 

Help me my life to fill. 

Thy lambs Thou bidd'st me feed, 

Feed me, O Shepherd mine : 
If led by Thee then may I lead 

My flock in paths divine. 

I give my life to Thee; 

Forgive the guilty past, 
And dwell Thyself, O Christ, in me, 

And give me heaven at last. 



302 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



APPENDIX B. 

In the following pages are miscellaneous hints and memoranda 
made by an imaginary superintendent, but written by the author 
while serving as a Sunday-school superintendent, or while editing 
a magazine especially for superintendents. 

Plan. — I intend to keep a pocket note-book on which to put 
down my own thoughts and other people's thoughts about the 
superintendent's work. If only one penciled hint out of ten seems 
to do me good, the time spent in writing the other nine will not be 
wasted. 

The Young People. — I believe I shall try the plan of class so- 
ciables. I can issue notes of invitation to Mr. A 's class and 

Mrs. M 's class to spend Tuesday evening with the pastor and 

the superintendent in the large Bible-class room. There will be 
less than forty to accommodate. A little music ; a talk of ten 

minutes from Brother L ; a cup of tea ; a "look" into the 

lesson for next Sunday ; a social twenty minutes ; some photo- 
graphs and engravings to be looked at ; a "reading," etc., etc., will 
make a good programme. I must try it. 

Cyclopaedia. — Lyman Abbott's new Biblical Cyclopaedia was 
recommended to me to-day by a friend. Must examine it. 

Artist. — Young Wilton, who works for Mr. Daggett, on Salem 
Street, is said to be an ingenious hand on the blackboard. Shall 
call on him. He may be the very man I need to develop the black- 
board work in my school. 

Lesson Notes. — It is a good plan, after one has studied his 
lesson without help, to use all available helps. I am afraid I have 
reversed that order hitherto. The hint dropped by Mr. Malcolm 
last night on that point is worth remembering. 

Normal Classes. — Are not the friends of the Sunday-school 
work carrying things too far in trying to "train" Sunday-school 
teachers? Would they put us all through a theological seminary? 
But I must look into that question. It may be more practicable 
than I supposed. 

Questions.— Prof. H is to spend Sunday with us. He 

knows a good deal about the Sunday-school work in England. 
Mem. : Ask him, 1. Concerning the irreverence of children in Sun- 
day school. Is it as bad there as here? I am sorely afflicted by 
the want of reverence among my scholars. 2. How generally is 



APPENDIX B. 303 

the "International Lesson System" used there? 3. What is the 
best English Sunday-school periodical? 

Ventilation. — Miss M complained to me about the "close 

air" in the Sunday-school room last Sunday. I don't believe the 
sexton knows anything about ventilating a room. Every window- 
should be open all of Mondays and Saturdays. A good current of 
fresh air should sweep through the house before Sunday school. 
It is impossible to be awake and alive and to do good teaching in 
old, dead, over-used, overheated air 

The Ideal. — If I put the best elements of the home, the public 
school, the public service of the church, the prayer meeting, and the 
class meeting together I shall have an ideal Sunday school. 

A Stereopticon. — A good instrument that will show pictures 
ten or fifteen feet in diameter would cost over $150. It would be 
one of the best, including cylinders for the gas, and a table for 
the lantern. This does not include pictures, which cost from 
seven to ten dollars a dozen. Now, if I could have such an in- 
strument I might hold evening exercises from time to time adapted 
to the older scholars and to the public generally. A "vesper 
service," with responsive Scripture reading and songs, could be put 
on the screen, and in the same way we could run through outlines 
of the lesson, besides giving good maps, and the best pictures illus- 
trating Bible lands, etc. I think of several uses to which such an 
instrument might be put by a Sunday school. I can see how a 
school might earn enough to pay for it. Must look into the sub- 
ject again. 

The Absent Teachers. — How would it do to put all classes 
whose teachers are absent into one large lecture class for the day? 
One superintendent in New York State sends all classes home 
whose teachers are absent. His teachers now are never absent. 
They say it costs too much to be away even for one day. 

The Class Sociable. — At the last one Mr. Langford, of the 
High School, gave a lecture on "Gas." At the next Mr. Raymond 
will give a talk, with experiments, on "Vocal Culture." It will do 
my young people good. 

Invariable Announcements. — I shall try never to omit an- 
nouncing in Sunday school : 1. The preaching service. 2. The reg- 
ular prayer meeting. 3. I shall always ask our pastor if he has 
anything to say to the school. 

An Itinerant Letter. — Have started a letter on its rounds 
among about twenty Sunday-school superintendents. Have stated 
my principal difficulty in reference to my older pupils, and re- 
quested each superintendent to whom it comes to give a suggestion 



304 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

toward getting a firmer hold upon this class of pupils. If the 
letter ever comes back I shall send it to the Journal for publica- 
tion. 

Map Drawing. — I am taking lessons in drawing just to be able 
to make a rude but approximately correct map on the blackboard 
to illustrate the lessons from week to week. 

An Annoying Boy. — George causes me a great deal of 

trouble. He is bright, witty, mischievous, and as restless as a 
humming bird. He sees that I watch him, and is trying to get me 
out of humor. I must pray for perfect patience to conquer him by 
kindness. 

The Library. — The best way to replenish the library is to pur- 
chase few books at a time, not more than a dozen. These can be 
selected carefully, and a leaflet printed for the use of the scholars, 
called "Supplemental Catalogue No. ," as often as new works are 
introduced. Some statement concerning the book, its subjects, 
class in literature, purpose, etc., might also be printed upon the 
leaflet, in order to awaken interest in the school. 

Collection Envelope. — Gardner's "Sabbath-school Collection 
Envelope" is a new and practical invention. 

Variety. — I shall open my school next Sunday with a brief 
"Invocation" preceding every other exercise ; then a song ; then the 
"roll-call ;" then the reading of the lesson and the study hour. It 
will be a change, and it will give the classes more time. 

The Boy Trouble. — George is all right. He annoyed 

me until I sent for him to help me put up some pictures. Since 
then he has behaved like a little gentleman. 

A Superintendent's Class. — Why may I not have a class to 
teach every Sabbath, on a little circle of seats near my desk? A 
class without a teacher for the day might come forward, and, after 
I have put everything into running order for the school I could, 
for twenty-five minutes or more, give them the lesson for the day. 
It would do me good. It would do them good. It would put me 
into fuller sympathy with my teachers. 

Absent. — Must go north on business for two weeks. Sorry to 
leave my school that long. Must write a short letter for each 
Sabbath during my absence. May be able to say some things not 
so easy to say viva voce. 

The Senior Classes. — Don't believe Mr. T 's class like to 

answer in concert with the rest of the school. They call it "child's 
play." What shall I do to reconcile them to it? 

The Class Sociables. — Mr. L , the telegraph operator, 

promises to give a lecture (with experiments) on "Telegraphy" 



APPENDIX B. 305 

before my "Sociable," to which I have invited Mr. A 's and 

Mrs. M 's classes. 

The Non-essentials. — I must not make too much of punctu- 
ality, silence, precision, etc., important as these elements are. 
Character and tendencies and love of Christ and zeal for souls 
are worth so much more in a superintendent. 

Tract Distribution. — It will add to the interest of the schol- 
ars, and do good in many homes, for the superintendent to select a 
good tract on some subject related to the lesson, and present 
copies of it to the entire school. However the lowly tract may 
be looked upon by some older people, by the children it is esteemed 
if wisely adapted to their needs. 

A Boy Choir. — Think I shall select ten boys for a choir, to sing 
on special occasions in the school, and, if the pastor approve, now 
and then in public service. But have I the boys who can sing 
well? Must consult the chorister. It will do the boys themselves 
good if I can make the plan work. 

Mothers' Meetings. — Wish our pastor would get the ladies to 
organize a "mothers' meeting" for conversation and prayer over 
the difficulties, responsibilities, and needs of mothers. Shall give 
him a hint. 

Two-Minute Drills. — Have heard of the plan of a "two- 
minute drill" every Sabbath, conducted by the superintendent. 
Subjects miscellaneous. Must inquire about the plan, and put 
down the results of my inquiry. 

Must do it. — Must ask the question every Sunday in my 
school, "Who was present at the last preaching service in our 
church?" Shall have all — teachers and scholars — who were 
present arise. 

Teachers' Meeting. — The superintendent should always ask 
at the teachers' meeting for the "sick" in the Sunday school. Who 
were absent last Sunday from each of your classes? W^hy absent? 
How shall we find out before next Sabbath? 

Change. — Variety in Sunday school is good, but I must not 
change too frequently. A plan needs time to test it. It won't do 
to drop an experiment because it does not work well on two or 
three trials. 

Bibles. — Only forty Bibles in my whole school of 350 persons 
last Sabbath. This won't do. We must all bring Bibles. 

My Desk. — A superintendent's desk should be a model of order 
and neatness. To look at a specimen of system tends to promote 
system. My desk was dusty and overcrowded with books and 
papers last Sabbath. 
20 



306 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Before 1860. — Some evening I shall bring together all the peo- 
ple in the church who were members of our Sunday school before 
the year 1860. This will aid me in preparing a brief history of the 
school. 

Echo Talks. — This is what I call my infant class drills when I 
visit and teach the class. The little folks love to repeat, and re- 
cite, and echo back my words. It is only another form of "cate- 
chizing," with an improvement in the name of the thing. 

Choral Service. — I like the new name I have given my singing 
meeting half an hour before school. The children learned to chant 
the "Gloria Patri" last Sunday, and they sing "Duke Street" 
admirably. Am determined to exalt the old hymns and tunes in 
my school. 

Hand Exercise. — The infant class manages the first "hand 
exercise" nicely. The teacher says, "One ;" hands go to the laps. 
"Two ;" arms folded. "Three ;" hands raised as high as possible. 
"Four ;" hands twirl and turn rapidly. "Five ;" arms folded 
again. It is restful to the young. 

Tea Meetings. — First, all the teachers and officers. Then, on 
another evening, all the senior scholars. Divide the other classes 
into about four sections, and have for each section a tea-meeting, 
with readings, declamations, pictures, etc., etc. 

Avoid High Pressure. — Enterprise is laudable. Ingenuity is 
allowable. Let me, however, avoid crowding matters too much, 
so as to develop an unhealthy craving for excitement in my school. 
Reach the social element. Control it. Develop it. But the 
study of God's Word that we may all grow in grace is the one 
aim. 

Impressive Moments. — The first and the last moments of a 
Sunday-school session should be calculated to impress the pupils 
with the sacredness of the day and the work. The introductory 
"silence" is a fitting preparation for the hour, and at the close the 
"silence" and the "Scripture sentences" are well adapted to leave 
a wholesome impression on the heart. Must give more thought to 
this matter in my school. 

Temperance. — Cannot accommodate Mr. B and Mrs. 

L , who are bent on giving up the regular lesson once a month 

for a "temperance meeting." "Fifty-two Bible lessons a year" is 
my motto. That is what Sunday school is for. Still I must 
teach temperance. 

Scroll of History. — Have had it prepared. Fifty yards of 
narrow bleached muslin, stretching across the schoolroom, divided 
into century sections. The word ADAM, a rude picture of the 



APPENDIX B. 307 

ark, a radiant cross, and the American flag indicate four important 
points in the history of the world. The name of Noah, followed by 
a long blue bar, indicates the length of his life. In the same way 
one sees at a glance the name, place, and full period of Abraham, 
Joseph, Moses, the Judges, etc., etc. I can add many items of 
interest to the "Scroll." 

The Bible in the Sunday School. — The "Leaf" is a fragment 
of the Bible, but I wish my pupils to have the whole Bible in hand 
in the school. Plans which occur to me as calculated to induce 
teachers and pupils to bring their Bibles every Sabbath : 1. Talk 
about it every week ; 2. Give credit marks to those who bring 
them ; 3. Issue a little circular or note to send home, making an 
appeal to parents in regard to the bringing of Bibles ; 4. See if 
our pastor will not make a special announcement and request from 
the pulpit ; 5. Ask all who have Bibles to rise in the Sunday 
school at each session. 

The Absent Teachers. — It is an excellent plan. I shall con- 
tinue it. Just before the time to begin the class study I ask all 
classes whose teachers are absent to stand up, and remain standing 
while I appeal for teachers. Thus I stop the whole school during 
the provision of substitutes, and make all feel that one absent 
teacher brings trouble to a whole school. The results are excel- 
lent already. 

Church Hymns. — Have printed four hymns on a separate 
sheet. Call them "Our Church Hymns." They are, 1. "From all 
that dwell below the skies ;" 2. "Rock of Ages, cleft for me ;" 
3. "Arise, my soul, arise;" and, 4. "When shall we meet again?" 
Why should not our Sunday schools make th^ir members familiar 
with the grand old hymns and tunes? The older pupils know 
them, and the little ones soon learn them. Properly sung they 
are as good as anything of later date. I believe in the modern 
Sunday-school music, however, and encourage its use. 

Lesson Banners. — I put the initial letters and catch-words of 
the titles, topics, and golden texts for each month on a large paper 
banner (manilla paper). This helps in a monthly and quarterly 
review. 

Closing Words. — The last words spoken in Sunday school 
should be reverent and impressive. I now have my school read 
with me responsively the twenty-third Psalm at the end of the 
session. 

The Infant Class. — It troubles me ; it troubles me exceed- 
ingly. Noisy, restless, insubordinate. It makes the whole school 
uneasy. Must devise some plan to keep it out of the main room. 



308 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Our Sick Scholaks. — I must have some plan by which I can 
find out who of our scholars are detained from school by illness. 
How would it answer to call attention to the matter at the close of 
every school session, asking the teachers to , inform me of any of 
their scholars who are ill? 

The Three Agencies. — I must never forget the value of the 
family in my school. Home is my best helper or my greatest 
hindrance. I must have a wire of influence between every class 
in the school and the homes they severally represent. Then there 
is the pulpit. I must see that my teachers do not get the idea that 
they are doing the whole work that the church was appointed to 
perform. The scholars must be interested in the preaching serv- 
ice. I am afraid they are not at present. Let me see to it that I 
am not the cause, in the slightest degree, for any failure here. My 
own school is the next, the third of the three great church agen- 
cies. I must see that no weak theory of Sunday-school work takes 
from the Sunday school the claim to divine authority which it un- 
doubtedly has. 

Vest-pocket Help. — Why does not some publishing house give 
us a little manual for the vest pocket, containing the title, topic, 
golden text, and home readings for the International Lessons? I 
wonder it has not been done; must inquire. [Since the above was 
written it has been done.] 

Small Book for the Infant Class. — These little "tots" need 
some very small volumes or tracts to carry home with them. The 
Picture Lesson Paper is delightful — nothing more beautiful ; but 
we ought to make every little infant pupil a messenger of the 
gospel, by using him or her to carry a few printed pages home 
with them. These may be interesting both to the parents and to 
the youngsters. Let me see if there is not something like this in 
the market. 

Missionary Work. — I am sure that my school is not doing 
enough in the missionary cause. They do not know enough about 
it, nor do they feel enough on the subject ; they do not give enough. 
I must have a missionary revival in my school. 

Associated Schools. — I wish that we might have a plan of 
union by which all schools in the church might be bound together 
in a sort of alliance or league especially devoted to the development 
of the teaching power of the individual schools. If, for example, 
we could all agree to adopt the same course of study outside of the 
International scheme — the same catechism, missionary studies, 
memory lessons, etc. — it would tend to increase the interest in a 
denominational way in the Sunday-school work. 



APPENDIX B. . 309 

The Conscience. — A child has a conscience. We must appeal 
to it in insisting upon the attendance of the little ones at church. 
Parental authority ought to be strong enough to send them all to 
preaching every Sabbath, but where that is employed we should 
convince them that church going is a duty. 

Annual Report. — Must publish one, giving names of all teach- 
ers and scholars. Can say a good deal to parents and church 
members through the columns of a neat little "Annual." A few 
advertisements will pay for it. 

Choral Circle. — Once knew a superintendent who organized 
his school into a "Choral Circle." He engaged a teacher to drill 
them. What a chorus choir for public services my school would 
make ! 

Sunday Evening. — Our pastor says he would like to have a 
choral circle to sing for him on Sunday evenings. The spirited 
evangelical songs of Moody and Sankey, and others quite as good ; 
and then many of the fine old hymns would give an additional 
charm to the evening service. If the pastor favors the choral 
circle we can have it. 

At Home. — Why do not my scholars prepare their Sunday- 
school lessons at home? 1. Perhaps the public school crowds them 
too much. It makes no allowance, as it should do, for religious 
education. 2. It is my fault. I do not talk about it enough. I 
might circulate a tract about it. 3. It is the pastor's fault. He 
never mentions it in the pulpit, nor, I fear, at the homes of the 
children. 4. It is the teachers' fault. They do not insist upon it 
emphatically enough. 5. It is the parents' fault. They do not 
use persuasion and authority. 

Readings. — In connection with the lessons I can easily find 
passages of poetry and of prose illustrative of the theme for the 
day. Why not have them read at the close of the class recitations 
by some good elocutionist in the school? I believe I will try this 
plan. 

Small Schools. — Mr. A says, "All the modern methods, 

as they are called, may be used as effectively in a small as in a 
large school." It is not the largest schools or the wealthiest that 
have most success. We may have gradation, discipline, and good 
instruction with fifty pupils as well as with five hundred. 

Put on the Pressure. — I am convinced that the superintendent 
who puts on the pressure on the educational side of his work in 
the Sunday school will not be a popular superintendent. There 
are so many indolent teachers, and so many incompetent teachers, 
and there is so much aversion on the part of our scholars to down- 



310 THE MODEEIST SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

right hard work in Sunday school that it is as much as a man's 
reputation is worth to insist firmly and uncompromisingly upon 
study of the right sort in his Sunday school. There is a sort of 
weak, pathetic, so-called "religious talk" in Sunday school, and 
it is the easiest thing in the world for a superintendent to substi- 
tute pious pathos for vigorous, stalwart work. Now, I want work 
done in the thorough study of God's Word. I want my scholars 
to get God's Word into their intellects and into their lives. In 
order to this they must know; to know they must study. This 
kind of work requires teachers. Teaching can be done by none 
but teachers. Teachers to make others know must themselves 
know. Now, may the Lord help me to stand up for the intellectual 
side of the work ! And I must not and need not sacrifice the 
religious side one particle. If this makes me unpopular, let me 
have grace to be unpopular. It will be a crown of honor after a 
while. But I must try to carry on my reform, for such it is, in a 
patient spirit. To lose my patience once may do me and my 
teachers untold damage. 

Short Opening Services. — I am satisfied that I make a mis- 
take when I take too much time for the opening exercises of my 
school. Ten minutes is long enough for the average school. The 
teachers should get at their classes for the class work when they 
are freshest. It is wrong to tire out a school with general exer- 
cises and then pass them over to the teachers in an exhausted con- 
dition. 

Tracts. — The tract is a powerful agency for good or for evil. 
Every errorist seeks to spread his errors by circulating tracts. I 
must see that we have a supply of good tracts to send out now 
and then from my school into the community. I may thus do a 
great deal of good. Must send to the Tract Society for a cata- 
logue of tracts that I may select some good ones for distribution. 

Rough Boys. — Eight or ten of our boys stand outside of the 
schoolroom to the very last minute and annoy the other children as 
they come in. What can I do to correct the evil. 

Solos. — Sankey sings solos. Why not? We may have solos 
in Sunday school if we can find the earnest, unaffected, sincere, 
sweet-voiced singer. Have I some talent of this kind in my school 
that should be developed? 

My Portfolio. — Friend L suggests to me the utility of a 

Sunday-school portfolio for the collection of all sorts of engravings, 
chromos, etc., on Biblical subjects, of all sizes and kinds, so that 
in teachers' meetings, in classes, and at home evening entertain- 
ments of pupils, we may have at command all that art has for our 



APPENDIX B. 311 

use in the illustration of the Word of God. I think the plan as 
feasible as it is beautiful and practical. At old art stores, and in 
old magazines, I may find any number of these old engravings, 
while the new and recent interest in the International Lessons 
on both sides of the Atlantic has produced some most admirable 
pictures in a great variety of sizes and styles bearing on the 
Bible. Then the department of religious pictures, not wholly 
historical, is very rich, and may be summoned to our service. I 
believe I will submit the plan to the teachers, and by their aid I 

can pick up a large number of the very works I need. Mr. W 

goes to the city soon ; I will have him look in at the old book and 
engraving shops, and see what he can do. The London Tract So- 
ciety publishes a large number of very fine lithographs, colored ; 
and I have seen a few samples of Bible pictures for infant classes 
by the Wesleyan Publishing House of London, which will be very 
well adapted to our use. 

Chautauqua. — I learn that Miss G , through the liber- 
ality of her superintendent and a few friends, intends to take her 
normal class of thirty young people to the Sunday-School Assembly 
to spend two weeks in the normal exercises, and to pass the re- 
quired examinations. She has been teaching them very faithfully, 
and it will be a pleasant and a wise thing to have them all 
together in tents at the Assembly. It will be two weeks of de- 
lightful recreation for them and for her. Why cannot some of 
our teachers at least club together and spend the time at Chau- 
tauqua? 

The Akron Museum. — What will not Akron do in Sunday- 
school lines? The Methodist Episcopal Sunday school of that 
city has organized a regular museum — geological, historical, and 
archaeological — of which Dr. Leiter of that school is superin- 
tendent. It already contains a great variety of specimens from 
all parts of this country — minerals, specimens in the department 
of natural history, coins, scrip, curiosities from Palestine, India, 
China, Japan, and elsewhere. The children are trained to make 
contributions to their museum. They are always on the look-out 
for rare things. It is a good, feasible, practicable plan. I spent a 
day or two not long ago with Franklin Fairbanks, Esq., of St. 
Johnsbury, Vermont. He showed me a rich cabinet of curiosities, 
a large museum, in fact, which he had collected himself from the 
time he was a little boy. The plan is useful. The Sunday school 
may cultivate this same habit among its young people. 

Difficulty Meeting. — Miss F says that she is puzzled to 

know what to do with her class of bright, Inquiring girls. They 



312 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

have many questions to ask, more or less directly growing out of 
the lesson — questions about ethics, doctrines, and the "rights and 
wrongs of things generally." She says there is no time to discuss 
these matters in the school, nor are they in the direct line of its 
work. The teachers' class has no place for them, nor the prayer 
meeting, nor the Sunday sermon. Yet there ought to be room to 
meet them somewhere. She might ask her class to bring their 
questions in writing on Sunday, and meet them on some afternoon 
at her house to give answers. She suggests that there are many 
points of faith and practice which people would like to have 
explained. Why not have all who wish come to a meeting for the 
purpose with their questions, and let the pastor or superintendent 
answer them? Another plan — let there be a question box, and 
one Sunday evening in each month let our pastor devote his dis- 
course to the discussion of its contents. I think if prepared for 
and announced, it might prove a popular service. 

Teachers' Meeting. — Speaking of difficulties, I scarcely know 

what to do with Mr. X , who came to our teachers' meeting 

last week bristling with knotty questions, and ready to spend the 
whole evening in disputation. He was quite offended when I lim- 
ited the discussion of all the difficulties in the lesson to ten min- 
utes, and said, in a loud whisper, something about "gag-law." But 
I am determined to make our Friday evening meeting intensely 
practical, and shall not waste the time in frivolous talk. 

Cakes and Cream. — Mr. P , one of the trustees who is not 

in the school, has asked me to hold the teachers' meeting in his 
parlor next week, and enjoy some refreshments at the close of the 
lesson study. He says that he cannot labor in the school, being 
absent from town a large part of the time, but he appreciates the 
teachers' work, and wants to give them a little encouragement. 

Children's Meeting. — Our pastor has closed his course of 
"Familiar Talks to Children" for the season. He has given seven 
short, easy addresses on Friday afternoons, accompanied with 
blackboard illustrations on such themes as "Your Companions," 
"Your Work," "Play," "Steps to Salvation," "Success," etc., 
much to the enjoyment of the children, as well as their profit. I 
notice that many of the young people who attended his meetings 
last fall, and were converted in the revival during the winter, 
speak in prayer meeting with remarkable clearness, and seem to 
have a very distinct understanding of God's work in their hearts. 



APPENDIX B. 313 

Programme of a Sunday-School Session. 

1. Perfect silence. 

2. Invocation. [Very brief.] 

3. Singing. [Church Hymn.] 

4. Recitation : Titles, Topics, and Golden Texts for current 
quarter, up to the day's lesson, by whole school. 

5. Review Catechism. [Ten minutes.] Embracing salient 
facts of the quarter's lesson up to the day's lesson. 

6. Class Studies. [Thirty-five minutes.] 

7. Review of the day's lesson, with practical application. 

8. Two-minute Catechism. [Books of the Bible.] 

9. Report of Secretary. 

10. The Pastor's Words. 

11. Announcements for the week, always including Preaching, 
Weekly Prayer Meeting, Teachers' Meeting, and Church Classes. 

12. Singing. 

13. Books and Papers distributed. 

14. Silence. 

15. Dismission. 

[Length of whole session from 2.30 to 4 P. M.] 

Plans for Exciting Interest among Children. 

To interest little people in the reading of useful books, and in 
real study outside of the prescribed tasks of the day school, I must 
adopt various ingenious schemes which will kindle the imagination, 
appeal to the ambition, and transform work into play. 

I do not sympathize wholly with the idea that children are never 
to be required to do hard work, that all study must be turned into 
a species of game, sugar-coated with amusements ; but, assuming 
that the authority of the day school and home guarantee the harder 
work out of which come mental discipline and enrichment, I think 
that the church, having no especial authority in educational mat- 
ters, must appeal to devices of various kinds which shall allure 
childhood. We cannot by rightful authority coerce, and so we 
must by legitimate expedients invite and delight. I must enlist the 
sympathies of our pastor, for a wise minister keeps his hand on 
the childhood of his church ; and with his heart in this work will 
tax his powers of invention to their utmost to make pleasant to the 
lambs of his flock the meadows in which they wander. 

By photographic or printed communications ; by special week- 
afternoon classes ; by occasional Sunday after-school sessions ; by 
pastoral visitation ; by little domestic local circles ; by pulpit an- 



314 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

nouncements, the true minister can create an esprit de corps in 
his church in the promotion of wholesome reading and home study 
which will helpfully supplement the educational work carried on 
by the ordinary day school. 

Imagine our pastor enlisting his little people in tracing the 
derivations of certain words, their origin, growth ; the families to 
which they belong ; the different uses made of the same word, etc. 
While this would be little else than an everyday school exercise, 
the fact that the minister proposed the question, that somewhere 
in the course of these word studies he has hidden away, to be found 
out, an important moral and practical lesson, would give more 
charm to the research than it could have by merely dropping into 
the regular order of daily recitation. It would make the casual 
meeting of the pastor and his children in the street an occasion of 
interest to both, and little eyes would twinkle with satisfaction at 
having made some progress since the last interview. They would 
have more respect for the minister, and he more interest in them. 
They would be on the constant lookout for words with which to 
puzzle him, and, perchance, with modest criticisms on something he 
"said in last Sunday's sermon." The friendly relations between 
pastor and children promoted by even so slight a literary fellow- 
ship as this would involve larger interests than appear at first 
sight. The literary fellowship might be the dumb wire through 
which, later on, and under other circumstances, might flash the 
spiritual message and illumination which every pastor has in his 
heart for every little member of his church household. 

Every house has some pictures in it. There are engravings or 
chromos, paintings or photographs, that hang on the wall. There 
are many kinds of pictures. There are different kinds of engrav- 
ings, on wood, stone, metal, line, stipple, mezzotint, etc. There are 
pictures of various kinds in books. No house but has its uncata- 
logued list of pictures to which little hands and eyes have access at 
will. The minister who sets the members of his Lyceum Reading 
Union or school on an artistic exploration to discover and classify 
the pictures in their own homes is already doing a good work. 
One little fellow begins with the parlor, draws his diagram of the 
four walls, and locates every picture, telling its subject, the class to 
which it belongs, the manner of its execution. Thus he goes over 
the walls of the whole house, and then begins to search like an 
Egyptologist or an Assyriologist into the pictures buried in the 
volumes on the table or on the shelves. Criticisms upon pictures 
as to their truthfulness to nature or otherwise, the stories which 
they commemorate, the lessons which they teach — what a world 



APPENDIX B. 315 

of possibilities do we find in the plainest home simply among the 
pictures which it contains, and in how many worthy things a min- 
ister educates the children of his church when he turns them out 
to observe, classify, criticise and report ! 

The pictorial papers which abound to-day furnish a good field 
for operation in this work of developing the activities of youth. 
The child who saves every picture to which he has a right, who 
learns how to trim them, and how neatly to paste them in a book, 
how to bind them, and then ornament the cover, has an oppor- 
tunity to do good by sending to many a home of poverty and degra- 
dation these little products of his own ingenuity and industry, 
which become worthy ministers of beauty, neatness, and morality. 
A minister whose Lyceum Reading Union has, in the course of the 
year, produced fifty or a hundred scrap-books of pictures and 
stories, would thereby be able to make valuable contributions to 
destitute families, schools, and communities. 

What we have said concerning the classification and study of 
pictures at home may also be said in reference to books. Some 
homes have but few books in them. And yet children from these 
homes would be able to make a good report concerning the sub- 
jects on which the books treat, the number of chapters into which 
they are divided, the style of binding, the authors, the publishers, 
and many other items about them. Such reports from a home 
would give the pastor a better insight into the real calibre, taste, 
and tendencies of that home than he could possibly secure through 
any amount of visitation. 

In a little town among the mountains of Pennsylvania there 
is a boy who has cultivated his taste for collecting geological and 
other specimens, curiosities and relics. He has learned through 
books and friends some facts about every specimen ; and it is most 
entertaining to have the little fellow go through his cabinet, his 
little finger pointing to each specimen, and his tongue rattling 
away, making report concerning it, where it came from, what it is 
composed of, what it belongs to, how it was produced, where better 
specimens may be had, and what he expects one of these days to do 
when he gets "all the money he wants, and gets a big room ;" and 
out of the stones come dreams, and out of the stones and dreams 
productive, educating, and refining influences. 

An herbarium, containing the flowers, leaves, plants, grasses, 
and mosses of a neighborhood, would in the same way be an in- 
centive to observation, carefulness and industry. Sweet contacts 
with nature might thus be promoted. And how, in the minister's 
study, on a given day, the pile of herbariums prepared by his own 



316 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Lyceum Reading Union, as gifts to this hospital or that, would 
delight his heart! 

Seated at the breakfast table, one of the older boys or girls 
starts a question, which the pastor put into motion the day before : 
How are the things on this table and in this house related to 
distant parts of our land or to other lands? Where did the mate- 
rial come from of which these dishes are made? That bit of silver, 
where was it probably found? The tea, the coffee, the pepper, 
the salt, the cord by which yonder picture is suspended, the wood 
from which that choice bit of furniture in the corner was made, 
the Japanese curiosity on the mantel, the four big shells that lie 
here and there in the room? 

One day our minister says to his Lyceum Reading Union : "I am 
very anxious to collect plans of houses, rooms, closets, halls. I 
want these plans to be accurate, the doors and windows must be 
properly located. I want to know the heights of ceilings, the 
height, as nearly as you can get it, from the ground to the top of 
the roof, or the top of the tower or chimney. In connection with 
such plans, I want to know the materials of which the house is 
built, the age of the house, the various families that have lived in 
it, the changes that have taken place in it ;" and they have for ten 
days such a searching into history, such a measuring of heights 
and lengths and breadths and depths one never saw before. There 
is not a movement in the whole task assigned but has educating 
power in it. The boy who once ascertains the height of the house 
will scarcely ever look at a house afterward without forming an 
estimate. 

To the above suggestion a wise minister adds a question ap- 
pealing to the imagination and the architectural skill of x his 
Lyceum Reading Union : "If you had your way what improvement 
would you make on the inside and outside of the house you report, 
and that without changing its size?" Consultations between 
parents and children come on — and jolly conversations they would 
be — on the changes which, for convenience' sake, and for the sake 
of appearance, could be made if only money were as plenty as the 
imagination is active. 

Wiser than the wisest plans above mentioned, by which such 
associations as the L. R. U. and the V. R. C. may be made a 
power, is that which, finding out the sick and blind and the really 
needy people of the community, organizes a mission of relief and 
comfort. Little hearts are touched by the appeals of the pastors ; 
little hands are employed in gathering and forming floral offerings ; 
little voices are heard in many a bedchamber reading for the half 



APPENDIX B. 317 

hour or more out of the latest paper the news of the day, or out of 
some good book the precious experiences of the past, or out of the 
Book of books the blessed hopes of eternity and the pledges of a 
Father's care. Blessed ministry would this be! And if our chil- 
dren were earlier trained to practical beneficence, the songs they 
sing about love and service would be far more worthf ul than now ! 

Imagine a pastor calling for "out-of-the-window prospects"' 
from the children of his congregation. In the cities and in smaller 
towns some of these outlooks would be very limited ; but even there 
a plain and simple description would educate the observer who 
would undertake to write his report, especially if he could learn 
to look beyond fences and walls. The glimpse at the blue sky 
which the back window of the city house furnishes might be more 
full of suggestion to the little city boy than a wider landscape 
from a country home. But our pastor gets something from the 
pens of his pupils, and a whole pile of "out-of-the-window" views 
accumulate upon his table. 

Again, he encourages his little people to write letters for correc- 
tion. The secular schools do not render much of this service. 
They cram, and they require "compositions" on "Eternity," "Au- 
tumn," "Amiability," the "Power of Love," etc., ad nauseum. The 
writing of business letters, letters of description, letters of friend- 
ship, in which in after years boys and girls are expected to have 
facility, is rarely called for in the public school. What a world of 
benefit the pastor might secure to the children of his fold by thus 
training them on the practical side of life ! 

The same skill and enthusiasm on the part of the minister might 
secure the reading of selected passages from the classical authors, 
the committing to memory of other passages, outlines of authors' 
lives, all of which would enrich the memory and refine the tastes. 
Children will do for pastor's sake things that for teacher's sake 
they would not do. He is a wise pastor who utilizes this willing- 
ness. 

Let the leader of the "Children's Lyceum" call for autobiog- 
raphies — life records of the little ones as they can recall them, the 
principal events they remember — the moving, the funeral, the 
longest journey they have ever taken, the best friends they have 
had, and what happened to them, their school teachers, their min- 
isters, their exploits, stories of adventure and peril, odd dreams — 
all the curious and remarkable things of a child's life. 

One minister secured from his young people written reports of 
sermons and lectures, and this was kept up so long that they ac- 
quired the habit of observing closely everybody whom they heard 



318 THE MODEKlSr SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

speak in public. This habit has educational advantages. Listless 
auditors are the curse of our modern churches. Training to the 
habit of attention to the sermon would compensate in three months 
for the labor spent. 

One day the pastor says to his class, "I want each one of you to 
think in a straight line from the center of your house out of each 
window, and let your thought run not merely a mile, but one hun- 
dred miles, and a thousand miles, and so on round the world, to see 
what great city that window would command if nothing interfered. 
There is a window in your home through which you might, circum- 
stances favoring, see Rome ; another window would command Lon- 
don, another San Francisco. How many great city windows have 
you in your house?" What a study of geography would follow 
such a proposal ! Every little fellow would be ready to report to 
his pastor the "Jerusalem window," the "Melbourne window," or 
the "London window" in his house. 

This is an age of newspapers and magazines. There is scarcely 
a house into which does not come some weekly religious or secular 
paper, and also some monthly magazine. Require a report from 
your pupils of the papers and magazines taken by the families 
they represent. Here would be a means of canvassing in the inter- 
est of useful publications. 

A teacher encouraged his pupils to study local geography by ask- 
ing for plans of the town or township in which they lived, they 
locating principal houses, connecting every point of interest with 
some event of the local history, or a history of the country, which 
would be interesting to all. 

A minister once located the principal characters of universal 
history on a single street — a long street, many miles long — chrono- 
logically so divided that his pupils could locate "Alexander's 
house," and the "house of Moses," and the "house of Napoleon," 
so that the street became a constant reminder of not only illus- 
trious names in history, but a chronological guide always present. 
"I passed," said a little fellow, "Alexander's house this morning 
on the way from the post-office, and it was not very far from the 
house of Aristotle." 

Reports might be brought to the pastor concerning and from 
the oldest people whom the pupils know — where they were born 
and when, some of their experiences, adventures, journeys, etc., etc. 
The study of human life, the listening attentively and with interest 
to what the old have to say, would be a profitable lesson to Amer- 
ican and English youngsters. 

If a minister or teacher were to undertake the collection of eti- 



APPENDIX B. 319 

quettical improprieties, breaches of good manners on the street, 
in the parlor, and elsewhere, he would have opened an admirable 
opportunity for educating his children in a subject very much neg- 
lected. 

One of the most delightful exercises which I ever introduced 
among a lot of young people was an imaginary tour of the Holy 
Land. Committees were organized to find out the best routes, and 
the expenses of each. A decision was arrived as to the route we 
were to take. The day of departure was appointed. We imagined 
ourselves, wherever w T e were, as on a journey, picking up from 
books of travel incidents to be reported at our next meeting. It 
took us eleven days to cross the Atlantic. We stopped in London 
five days, and saw many things ; and then passed onward across the 
Continent to Palestine, and one of our number wrote imaginary 
letters from the Holy Land, which were published in the village 
paper, and every little pilgrim interested in the device was eager 
to gather all the information he could. We have sometimes 
thought that, with such a pilgrimage in connection with the pub- 
lic school, there might be put variety into the monotony and tire- 
someness of school life. How much might be taught by this meth- 
od of history, geography, archaeology, art, and business habit! 



320 THE MODERN" SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



APPENDIX C. 

SUNDAY-SCHOOL SEED THOUGHTS 
On the Institution, its Relations and its Teachers. 

No. 1. The Sunday-school is not a substitute for the family, for 
the public church service, nor for the other religious meetings of 
the church ; but it is a department of the church of Christ, in 
which the Word of Christ is taught for the purpose of bringing 
souls to Christ, and of building up souls in Christ. 

No. 2. The Sunday school should supplement the family, and the 
Sunday-school teacher should aid wise and godly parents to bring up 
their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord ; and he 
should also be the religious instructor of children whose parents 
neglect this important part of their duty. 

No. 3. The Sunday school should supplement the pulpit, and the 
Sunday-school teacher should induce his pupils regularly to attend 
the public and social services of the church, and he should also seek 
to bring them to a hearty acceptance of Christ, and to membership 
in His church. 

No. 4. The Sunday-school teacher should be a Christian in ex- 
perience and profession ; a consistent Christian in life and deport- 
ment ; a Christian teacher in knowledge and tact, and a Christian 
friend in sympathy and helpfulness. 

No. 5. The Sunday school should be like a refined Christian 
home in attractiveness, comfort, beauty, cheerfulness, and in the 
mutual confidence and affection of its members. 

No. 6. The Sunday school is a part, a primitive method, and a 
product of the church ; therefore it should be controlled and sus- 
tained by the church, and its services should be characterized by 
the reverence and propriety and sanctity of a church service. 

No. 7. The Sunday school is a school, and it should be organized 
and conducted after the general methods which are approved by 
the wisest and most experienced secular educators, and its instruc- 
tions should be systematic, thorough, and enthusiastic. 

No. 8. The Sunday school is a Christian school, and it should 
possess the character and tone, and be followed by the fruits which 
belong to an institution under the direction and inspiration of the 
Holy Spirit of God. 



APPENDIX C. 321 

No. 9. The Sabbath-school teacher needs a careful preparation — 
general and specific — for his work : 1. Because of the text-book he 
is to use ; 2. Because of the pupils he is to teach ; 3. Because of 
the results he is to seek. 

No. 10. The Sabbath-school teacher's general preparation should 
comprise : 1. A knowledge of the construction and contents of the 
Bible; 2. A knowledge of the powers and peculiarities of his 
pupils; 3. A knowledge of the principles of teaching; 4. Some 
practice in teaching under wise and candid criticism. 

No. 11. The Sabbath-school teacher's specific preparation should 
comprise that arrangement of the contents of a Scripture lesson 
which will best aid the teacher in leading his pupils to earnest 
thoughtfulness and self-application in the simple reading of God's 
Word. 

No. 12. The proper preparation of a Scripture lesson comprises : 
1. The collation of parallel passages of Scripture bearing on the 
lesson text ; 2. The careful analyzing of the lesson text ; 3. The 
thoughtful exploration of the lesson text ; 4. The wise adaptation 
of the lesson to each member of the class. 

No. 13. Parallel passages are those portions of Scripture 
outside of the lesson text itself, in which the same or similar sub- 
jects as those contained in the lesson text are treated. These pas- 
sages are to be sought by means of the Concordance and Reference 
Bible. 

No. 14. A careful analysis of each lesson may be made by look- 
ing for the following seven elements : 1. The time — of the record, 
occurrence, or counsel ; 2. The places ; 3. The persons ; 4. The 
actions or words of these persons in these places at the time speci- 
fied ; 5. The difficulties we encounter in the reading or explanation 
of the lesson ; 6. The doctrines or general principles taught ; 7. The 
duties to be drawn from the lesson. 

No. 15. The thoughtful exploration of the lesson text is that 
close, independent, devout, and persevering searching for the 
deepest and most essential truth or principle — the central doctrine 
— which it contains ; which doctrine will relate to God, to man, or 
to God and man, in the scheme of human redemption. 

No. 16. A wise adaptation of the lesson to the class requires : 
1. A looking at the lesson with each pupil in mind to see what is 
contained in it which the pupil most needs ; 2. A careful selection 
of these truths from the many thoughts which a general prepara- 
tion may have elicited ; 3. The arrangement of these selected 
truths in a way calculated to arrest the attention of the whole 
class, and to render them permanent and effectual. 
21 



322 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

No. 17. There are four classes of teachers : 1. Those who leave 
with their pupils a general and good impression, but no definite 
knowledge ; 2. Those who at the time of the class exercises impart 
knowledge, but do not provide for its retention by the pupil ; 3. 
Those who so communicate knowledge that their pupils remember 
just what they have received ; 4. Those who so impart knowledge 
as to develop self-activity in the pupil, quickening his intellect to 
effort of its own. 

No. 18. Intellectual quickening is the process by which the 
teacher excites the intellectual power of his pupil to self-activity 
in the line of his teaching ; and to be effectual it must also lead to 
that course of thought, feeling, purpose, and action which are the 
proper products of the truth taught. 

No. 19. The teacher, in order to develop intellectual quickening, 
must be able to secure the attention of his pupils. This attention, 
which is the condition of successful teaching, must be : 1. Volun- 
tary ; 2. Interested ; 3. Intense ; 4. Inquiring ; 5. Persevering ; 
and, 6. Effectual and obedient, leading the pupil to will and to do 
in the line of the truth to which he has given attention. 

No. 20. The teacher should so instruct and direct his pupils as 
that they shall feel it necessary to put forth some effort of their 
own in connection with every lesson, and this effort should be put 
forth to some extent at home during the week. 

No. 21. The teacher should induce his pupils to put forth some 
effort in connection with the lesson in the class. There must be in 
every class exercise something to hear, something to see, something 
to say, something to do, something to remember, something to 
report about, something to think out, and something to apply to 
their daily lives. 

No. 22. The teacher should seek to interest the pupils in the sub- 
ject-matter of every lesson, so that their curiosity shall be excited, 
their intellectual powers exercised, their consciences startled, if 
necessary their fears aroused, their affections won, and their wills 
brought to prompt and right decisions. 

No. 23. The teacher must never sacrifice his own individuality 
to any method, but by repeated experiment find out his own best 
way of working, and, without disregarding the suggestions which 
come from others, endeavor to render that way more and more 
effective. 

No. 24. The teacher should remember the power of a good repu- 
tation for tact and knowledge ; the power of personal affection ; 
the power of anticipative interest or expectation on the part of his 
pupils ; the power of a present purpose summoning himself to the 



APPENDIX C. 323 

immediate duties of the hour ; and the magnetic power of the 
emancipated eye, enabling him to dispense with leaf, book, and 
notes, and to look into the faces of his pupils during the process of 
teaching. 

No. 25. It is the business of the teacher to arrest and to arouse 
the minds of his pupils, and to set them at the legitimate business 
of mind, which is to think — to think with a wise purpose — to think 
in order : 1. To feel their need of truth ; 2. To explore old truth ; 
3. To get new truth ; 4. To grow by truth ; 5. To make a wise use 
of truth. 

No. 26. The teacher should learn the value of lesson illumina- 
tion, which is the employment of those elements in teaching by 
which the delighted attention of his pupils is attracted towards a 
lesson, and its instructions rendered more clear to his understand- 
ing. 

No. 27. There are four peculiarities of the pupil which the 
teacher should undertand and employ in attracting him towards 
a lesson : 1. The pupil's delight in seeing ; 2. The pupil's delight in 
imagining ; 3. The pupil's delight in comparing ; 4. The pupil's 
delight in knowing. Corresponding to these four peculiarities are 
the four great lesson lights : 1. Objects of sight ; 2. Exercises of 
the imagination ; 3. Comparisons ; 4. Knowledge — historical, sci- 
entific, etc. 

No. 28. The best light to shed upon a Bible lesson is Bible light. 
The teacher of the Bible should, therefore, be familiar with the 
history, geography, poetry, manners and customs of the Bible, and 
the present condition and peculiarities of the lands in which the 
events recorded in the Bible occurred. 

No. 29. The facts of everyday life with which pupils are most 
familiar are invaluable in the illumination of lessons. The teacher 
should, therefore, multiply his store of illustrations by the habit of 
observation, by the study of the masters of illustration in books, 
sermons, etc., and by accumulating and preserving illustrative 
material in scrap and note books. 

No. 30. The teacher should remember that facility in the use of 
illustrations comes from patient and constant practice, and that 
the best illustrations are those which come spontaneously while he 
is attempting to make clear to his pupils a truth which is clear to 
himself. 

No. 31. The teacher should never unnecessarily use visible and 
material things to illustrate spiritual truth ; nor should he use too 
many illustrations ; nor should he use them for the purpose of 
filling up the time, amusing the class, or displaying his own genius. 



324 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

No. 32. The best illumination which a lesson from the Bible can 
receive is in the consistent life and spirit of the man who teaches it. 

No. 33. Word-picturing is a process of illumination which is 
always effective in attracting the attention of a class. The teacher 
should remember that in word-picturing the pupil will acquire no 
more definite and vivid view of the lesson than the teacher himself 
possesses. 

No. 34. Interrogation or questioning is the act or process of 
incomplete statement (of a fact or proposition) by which the mind 
is incited and directed to the examination of a subject in order 
to complete the statement of the facts or proposition suggested. 

No. 35. The design of interrogation or questioning in the work 
of teaching is : 1. To measure the pupil's knowledge and power for 
the teacher's and the pupil's information ; 2. To stimulate the pu- 
pil's desire for knowledge and his purpose to secure it ; 3. To assist 
the pupil in such purpose and effort, by questions put to him, and 
by questions elicited from him ; 4. To prove the teacher's work. 



APPENDIX D. 325 



APPENDIX D. 

INTERNATIONAL NORMAL LESSONS. 

The committee appointed at the centenary in London, in 1880, 
has published the following outline course of reading and study for 
Sunday-school teachers, and candidates for that office : 

I. — The Sunday-school Teacher. 

1. Readings concerning the highest aims of Sunday-school work ; 
conversion, spiritual culture, and formation of character. 

2. The mental, moral, and spiritual qualifications of the teacher. 

3. Principles and methods of teaching in their relation to class 
instruction. 

4. Helps to the work of Sunday-school instruction. 

5. Difficulties and encouragements of the Sunday-school teacher. 

II. — The Bible — the Sunday-school Text-book. 

1. Readings on the evidences of the authenticity and genuineness 
of the sacred writings. 

2. The canon of Scripture, how formed : characteristics of the 
books. 

3. Language and style of Scripture. 

4. The study of Scripture, with special references to Sunday- 
school instruction. 

5. Examples of religious instruction, public and private, found in 
the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. 

6. The teaching process, as exemplified in the Bible : in ques- 
tioning, metaphors and similes, object illustrations, parables, prac- 
tical application. 

III. — The Modern Sunday School. 

1. On the history and statistics of the Sunday school. Early 
and independent Sunday-school movements ; the work initiated by 
Raikes — its beginning and development in England and America ; 
the uniform lesson movement : the "International system." 

2. On the advantages of the Sunday-school system as a means of 
reaching and instructing children and youth. 



326 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

3. On the relation of adults to the Sunday school ; the difficulties 
in the way of their retention ; their peculiar necessities ; modifica- 
tion of the Sunday-school system to meet the demands of this class. 

4. On the constitution, organization, and, management of the 
Sunday school; difference between church (or congregational) and 
mission schools. 

5. On the mutual duties of school officers, teachers, and scholars. 

6. On associated effort ; conventions, institutes, preparation and 
training classes, etc. 



APPENDIX E. 327 



APPENDIX E. 

The following additional hints are offered to teachers concerning 
methods of class work : 

1. Reading the lesson — in concert by the class ; by alternate 
verses, each scholar reading one ; or responsively, the teacher tak- 
ing the first verse, the whole class the second, etc. 2. Elliptical 
reading of the lesson — the teacher alone using an open Bible. As 
he reads, let him omit principal words which must be supplied by 
the scholars, singly or in concert. 3. Low concert responses in 
the class. Repetitions of the lesson, etc., by which all may be occu- 
pied at the same time. 4. Topical outlines; if prepared by the 
pupils themselves, all the better. 5. Review the preceding lesson, 
occupying but a very short time in so doing. Let a scholar give 
the substance of the lesson, and permit the rest, after he has fin- 
ished, to add omitted facts. 6. State the lesson for the day. This 
may be done by one of the scholars, the rest keeping their books 
closed. At the close of his statement additional facts may be given 
by the class. 7. Principal words and phrases. Let the teacher 
call them out, and request definitions and explanations from the 
class. 8. Analyze. What (1) persons, (2) places, (3) times, 
(4) actions, are alluded to in the lesson? What (5) difficult 
words or (6) phrases occur? What (7) doctrines and (8) duties 
are taught? 9. Parallel Passages. Where the same incident is 
narrated by two, three, or four of the Evangelists, let the class be 
divided into sections, and taking up the details of the occurrence, 
compare the terms employed by the Evangelists in describing it. 
10. References. Sometimes in these lessons, and always in a good 
reference Bible, the several verses are illustrated and explained by 
other passages of Scripture. It may be profitable to study the les- 
son occasionally by consulting the references. 11. Drawing Les- 
sons. Let a verse be read. Then let a scholar state one of the 
facts it contains. From this fact let the class infer a theological 
or practical lesson. 12. Principal Lessons. Having drawn several 
lessons, let one, two, or three of the most important truths be se- 
lected for special investigation. 13. Topical Outlines. The lesson 
may be divided into a series of propositions, topics, or pictures. 
These may be memorized, and the facts and teachings of the lesson 
connected with them. 14. The Golden Text should always be 
committed to memory. It may sometimes form the topic of inves- 



328 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

tigation, and lessons may be drawn from it. 15. Character. 
One or more characters in the lesson may be selected for examina- 
tion and description. This may sometimes be done in writing. 

16. Map Exercise. Maps and diagrams may be drawn by the 
scholars at home, and thus the topography of the lesson illustrated. 

17. Written Answers. A question announced the week before may 
elicit many brief written replies from the class. Freedom of ex- 
pression is often enjoyed by a scholar at home, with pencil in 
hand, not so easily secured in the presence of others. 

Should a teacher always ask the scholars the questions on the 
lesson help given to them? I answer frankly, Usually he should 
not. A good lesson help, prepared by a wise teacher, contains 
questions so arranged as to begin with the pupil's knowledge and 
guide him to knowledge he needs. Such questions are arranged in 
proper form, and the result of an intelligent answer should be to 
unfold the lesson fully to him who, by the guidance of such ques- 
tions, investigates it. At the same time the living teacher will be 
more likely to awaken the powers of his pupils by propounding 
questions that are then and there the outgrowth of large knowledge, 
of the teacher's tact, and of the exigencies of the occasion. 

If the teacher be conscious of his inability to form better ques- 
tions than those furnished in the lesson help, he may so master those 
as to put into them the heartiness of spontaneity, and, under the 
guidance of the mind who prepared the questions, lead his pupils 
to the same results as though he had himself prepared them. It 
may be asked, then, What special use is there in giving lesson 
helps to the scholars for their weekly preparation? I answer 
again, Where the teachers and pupils prepare the lesson by the 
same guide, they may become masters of the subject, and in this 
way converse about it, and other thoughts and questions will nat- 
urally grow out of the conversation thus developed. And it will 
not discourage the scholar not to ask him the specific questions 
of the help if he and the teacher become so much interested in the 
lesson that they can talk about it freely without the direction of 
any lesson help. 

While discussing the general subject of questions, and commend- 
ing spontaneous conversation as the highest form of teaching, let 
me call attention to a possible plan of conversation which will 
greatly tend towards mutual freedom and action in the class. 

A teacher may construct carefully a statement full of useful 
information, historical, geographical, doctrinal, or religious. This 
statement he may read to his class once, requiring them to give 
such close attention to the single reading that, when he reads it 



APPENDIX E. 329 

the second time, pausing at salient words, they may be able to 
supply them. At every reading these ellipses may be increased, 
and thus the scholars trained to remember what they hear. Such 
reading, if the teacher masters the subject, may become a sort of 
conversation between teacher and class, which he may take up at 
any time, and, by frequently repeating, may put well into the 
minds of his pupils. If, for example, he kept a little blank book 
with these statements written out in full and numbered, it would 
take but little time to go over a number of them every Sabbath. 
In the course of the year how much the scholars might be induced 
to remember ! The "International Sunday-school Lesson" might be 
taken up in the same way in a class every week. The preparation 
of the statement would be a good thing for the teacher. 

The following is a conversation statement on Bible geography. 
The words italicized are words which, on the second reading of the 
statement in their hearing, the class will be expected to supply : 

We propose a trip to Bible lands, especially to the land of Pal- 
estine, also called the Holy Land, Canaan, the Promised Land, the 
Land of Israel, and Judwa. In making this pilgrimage we must 
go toward the East, and across the Atlantic Ocean. From New 
York to Liverpool in a straight line is about three thousand miles. 
From Liverpool we may go to Paris, thence to Marseilles, from 
Marseilles to Malta, from Malta to Joppa, making the whole dis- 
tance from New York to Joppa not far from six thousand miles. 
At Joppa we recall the vision of Peter as reported in the Acts of 
the Apostles, where he saw a great sheet knit at the four corners, 
and let down from heaven. From Joppa we look northward and 
southward up and down the coast line of Palestine. Before us are 
the hills of Judwa, and among them, about thirty-four miles in a 
straight line from Joppa, a little south of east, is Jerusalem. 
Further east, sixteen miles, we come to Jordan and the Dead Sea. 
Beyond these are the table lands of Moab and Bashan. 

Simple lessons after this style may be prepared about the Book 
of books, the languages in which these books were written, their 
classification, and the principal events in the lives of leading Bible 
characters. 



330 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



APPENDIX F. 

THE PALESTINE GLASS. 

A Circular: 

Proposing a New Department of Sunday-school Instruction.* 

Every Bible reader should be acquainted with the outlines of 
sacred history and chronology, and with the details of Biblical 
antiquities and geography. A knowledge of these is essential to 
a proper understanding of the divine Word. We often overlook the 
force and beauty of many of its allusions through our ignorance of 
sacred antiquities. 

There is, moreover, an air of reality imparted to all history by 
familiarity with the geography involved in it. In view of the su- 
pernatural character of Bible history, acquaintance with Bible 
geography is particularly important. Once give its wonderful 
transactions an actual locality among hills, valleys, and cities 
which may still be found and visited, connecting and comparing 
them with the records of profane history, and our youth will read- 
ily distinguish the miraculous from the mythical, and discover in 
the Bible lands of to-day not only clear illustrations of many por- 
tions of the Bible, but strong and irresistible evidence in favor of 
its divinity. 

Our theological seminaries and Biblical institutes are the only 
places where these subjects are studied with anything like thor- 
oughness, and yet their importance to all readers of the Bible 
can scarcely be overstated. The incidental allusions and explana- 
tions of the pulpit do not effect much. The pulpit is not the place 
for historical and geographical instruction. The greater particu- 
larity of the Sunday school and Bible class affords only disconnected 
and fragmentary information. Excellent books in these depart- 
ments have been widely circulated, but are used as text-books only 
in colleges and seminaries, or for reference in the family, Sunday 
school, and Bible class. 

Sacred history, geography, and antiquities must be systematic- 
ally and thoroughly taught to our Sunday-school children. And 



* This circular was published and widely circulated in 1862. 
The first class was organized in 1855. 



APPENDIX F. 331 

yet the sacred hours of the Sabbath usually devoted to Sabbath 
school cannot be appropriated to these topics, when truths so much 
more important — the doctrinal and practical — are to be especially 
considered. Now, by what method may we impart such knowl- 
edge in an attractive way to these our Sunday-school students? 
Why may we not have a Sunday-school department devoted es- 
pecially to these subjects? 

1. Call such department the "Palestine class," or "Class of Bib- 
lical Antiquities." 

2. Its meetings may be held on some week-day evening, or on 
Saturday afternoon. 

3. All persons should be invited to attend — adults and children — 
parents, teachers, pupils. 

4. The pastor, or other competent person, may be its president or 
teacher. A chorister may be employed to conduct the musical ex- 
ercises of the class. The secretary and treasurer may be elected 
by ballot, quarterly. 

5. The church "catechism," which most pastors use in the cate- 
chumen class or Sunday school, may be introduced as a feature of 
this class. 

6. The class to be divided into grades, through which scholars 
may pass successively, as they progress. This insures thorough- 
ness, and renders the class exercise interesting. 

7. Select committees of examination and other officers from the 
highest grade at any time attained by the class. 

8. For convenience and pleasure, the recitations are usually con- 
ducted by the concert method, but to insure personal thoroughness 
each pupil is examined separately and placed according to his 
advancement, successively in the grade — "Pilgrim," "Resident," 
"Explorer," "Dweller in Jerusalem," and "Templar." By 
this simple, practicable, and pleasant plan, the liveliest interest 
may be maintained in the class. It will prove both study and 
pastime. 

9. Certificates may be given to the members of each grade. 

10. Expenses for maps, books, and certificates may be met by 
occasional exhibitions, at which "conversations" on a trip to the 
Holy Land, Biblical incidents, songs, and recitations will insure 
novelty, profit, and entertainment. 

11. Let the teacher keep a "record," in which to enroll names of 
scholars in each grade ; prepare his programme for each recitation 
in advance, and register the results of his private Biblical re- 
searches. Such a record will become a most valuable "cyclo- 
paedia." 



332 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

12. Use a small tea "call-bell," by which order and perfection of 
drill may be maintained. 

13. Scholars should always bring Bibles with them for reading 
and reference. 

14. An organ or melodeon will be of great value in the singing 
and map exercises. 

15. Let each session be short, and introduce as much variety 
in the exercises as possible. 

16. Take short lessons from the text-book, and secure prompt, 
spirited, concert responses. 

17. Always read in concert some scriptural selection at the 
opening of the class. 

18. Give all scholars an opportunity to present difficult ques- 
tions from the Bible, and let the same be answered by the class 
the week after their announcement. 

19. Give descriptions of sacred localities, distances from Jeru- 
salem, size, present condition, sacred associations, etc. Let schol- 
ars often repeat these facts, and record in blank books for their 
own use. In this way they will soon become as familiar with the 
Holy Land as with their own neighborhood. 

20. Give a specified time (two months or longer) to each grade. 
Members of lower grades may be examined at any time for the 
higher already reached by the class, but only at appointed times 
may the higher advance. For example : If the highest grade is 
"Explorer," any lower grade may be examined at any time to 
attain the "Explorer's," but not go beyond that until the appointed 
time for advance arrives. In this way new scholars can enter the 
class and overtake the advanced, while the advanced, by frequent 
repetition of old lessons, become more thorough. 

21. Let the teacher or president himself examine all candidates 
for the first or "Pilgrim" grade ; after that let him appoint "exam- 
iners" for the historical lessons, he himself conducting all map ex- 
ercises in every grade. 



APPENDIX G. 333 



APPENDIX G. 

THE ASSEMBLY SERVICE. 

Directions. 

1. It is the object of the present series of Assembly Services 
to enlist our older Sunday-school pupils, and the adult members of 
our Congregations in general, in doctrinal studies and in thought- 
ful public worship. 

2. A monthly Sabbath evening hour may be appropriated to such 
Services. 

3. The Pastor, the President of the Assembly (usually the Sun- 
day-school Superintendent), two Readers, a Choir and Chorus, 
with the entire Assembly or Congregation, may render this Service 
reverently and profitably. 

4. The Readers should be carefully selected. They should 
have good voices, and be able to articulate distinctly, pronounce 
accurately, and to conduct their part of the Service in a becoming 
spirit and manner. Their places should be in front of the pulpit, 
before lecterns or tables — one on each side. 

5. In addition to the regular Church Choir, there may be a 
large Chorus selected from the Assembly or Congregation, and 
under the direction of a good leader. The Assembly Chorus should 
be divided into two Sections, and seated on each side of the pulpit. 
The parts assigned to the "Assembly" are to be rendered by all 
present : Pastor, President, Readers, Choruses, Choir, and the 
entire Congregation. 

6. The Service should begin promptly. The silence and reverent 
manner of public worship should characterize the Congregation. 
There should be no whispering in "Choir," "Chorus," or "Assem- 
bly," even before the opening exercises. The Pastor and President 
should strictly enforce this regulation. "The Lord is in His holy 
temple ; let all the earth keep silence before Him." 

7. The thought should be emphasized, that this is not a "Sunday- 
school Concert," an "Entertainment," or anything less dignified 
and holy than a Regular Public Service, and that all must enter 
into it with solemn intent and devout hearts. Certainly without 
God's presence and blessing it would be but a mournful mockery. 



334 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

THE ASSEMBLY SERVICE. 
NO. 1. 



Subject— GOD. 



jproaramtue. 

1. VOLUNTARY ON ORGAN. 

2. SCRIPTURE LESSON. 

Read by the Pastor. Psalm 96. 

3. HYMN. 

Luton. L. M. Tune— Songs of Devotion, p. 185. 

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1 Come, O my soul, in sacred lays 
Attempt Thy great Creator's praise ; 
But O what tongue can speak his fame ? 
What mortal verse can reach the theme ? 

2 Enthroned amid the radiant spheres, 
He glory, like a garment, wears ; 
To form a robe of light divine, 

Ten thousand suns around Him shine. 

3 In all our Maker's grand designs, 
Omnipotence, with wisdom, shines ; 

His works, through all this wondrous frame, 
Declare the glory of His name. 

4 Raised on devotion's lofty wing, 
Do thou, my soul, His glories sing ; 
And let His praise employ thy tongue, 
Till listening worlds shall join the song. 



APPENDIX G. 



335 



R. L. 



4. PRAYER, BY THE PASTOR. 
5. SONG. 

O WORSHIP THE LORD. 

Rev. Robert Lowry. 

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praise Him with the Fa - ther, and with the Son, our Saviour. 



From " Royal Diadem," by permission of Biglow & Main. 



336 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



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6. CALL TO THE SERVICE. 

Pastor. I now call upon this Assembly to meditate upon the 
being and attributes of the great God ; to praise His holy name, and 
in prayer to call upon Him for the grace we need, and which has 
been by Him promised to all who believe His Word and yield them- 
selves to His service. 

Congregation ( sing ) . 

Uxbridge. L. M. Tune — Songs of Devotion, p. 178. 



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=^= 



O Holy Father, Holy Son, 
And Holy Spirit, Three in One, 
Thy grace devoutly we implore, 
Thy name be praised for evermore. 

Pastor. An eminent and devout Christian theologian* thus 
speaks of God : 

"He is the eternal, independent, and self-existent Being ; the 
Being whose purposes and actions spring from Himself, without 
foreign motives or influence ; He who is absolute in dominion ; the 
most pure, the most simple, the most spiritual of all essences ; in- 
finitely benevolent, beneficent, true, and holy ; the cause of all being, 



*Dr. Adam Clarke (1760-1832), quoted in "McClintock and 
Strong's Cycl." 



APPENDIX G. 337 

the upholder of all things ; infinitely happy, because infinitely per- 
fect ; and eternally self-sufficient, needing nothing that He has 
made ; illimitable in His immensity, inconceivable in His mode of 
existence, and indescribable in His essence ; known fully only to 
Himself, because an infinite mind can only be fully comprehended 
by itself. In a word, a Being who, from His infinite wisdom, can- 
not err or be deceived, and, from His infinite goodness, can do noth- 
ing but what is eternally just, and right, and kind." 

7. THE MAJESTY, GLORY, AND POWER OF GOD. 

President. The blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, 
and Lord of lords ; 

First Chorus * Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light 
which no man can approach unto ; 

Second Chorus. Whom no man hath seen, nor can see ; 

President. To whom be honor and power everlasting. Amen. 
1 Tim. 6 : 15, 16. 

Assembly. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the 
only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen. 1 
Tim. 1 : 17. 

President. From everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God. 
Ps. 90 : 2. 

First Chorus. How great are His signs ! and how mighty are 
His wonders ! 

Second Chorus. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and 
His dominion is from generation to generation. Dan. 4: 3. 

Assembly. Great and marvelous are Thy works, Lord God Al- 
mighty ; just and true are Thy ways, thou King of saints. Rev. 
15: 3. 

President. Who coverest Thyself with light as with a garment ; 

First Chorus. W T ho stretchest out the heavens like a curtain ; 

Second Chorus. Who layeth the beams of His chambers in the 
waters ; 

Assembly. Who maketh the clouds His chariot ; 

President. Who walketh upon the wings of the wind ; 

First Chorus. Who maketh His angels spirits ; His ministers a 
flaming fire. Ps. 104 : 2-4. 

Second Chorus. Canst thou by searching find out God? canst 
thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? Job 11 : 7. 

Assembly. Touching the Almighty, we cannot find Him out : 



* The parts by the "Chorus'' are, of course, to be read, not sung. 
22 



338 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

President. He is excellent in power, and in judgment, and in 
plenty of justice : He will not afflict. Job 37 : 23. 

First Chorus. O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and 
art to come. Rev. 11 : 17. 

Second Chorus. Who is like unto Thee, O Lord, among the gods? 

Assembly. Who is like Thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in 
praises, doing wonders? Exod. 15: 11. 

President. O Lord my God, Thou art very great ; 

First Chorus. Thou art clothed with honor and majesty. Ps. 
104: 1. 

Second Chorus. O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and 
knowledge of God ! 

Assembly. How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways 
past finding out ! Rom. 11 : 33. 

8. HYMN. 

Rockingham. L. M. Tune — Songs of Devotion, p. 179. 

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Choir. 

1 O God, Thou bottomless abyss ! 

Thee to perfection who can know? 

O height immense ! what words suffice 

Thy countless attributes to show? 

Choir and Chorus. 

2 Greatness unspeakable is Thine ; 

Greatness, whose undiminished ray, 
When short-lived worlds are lost, shall shine, 
When earth and heaven are fled away. 

Assembly. 

3 Unchangeable, all-perfect Lord, 

Essential life's unbounded sea, 
What lives and moves, lives by Thy word ; 
It lives, and moves, and is from Thee. 

4 High is Thy power above all height ; 

Whate'er Thy will decrees is done ; 
Thy wisdom, equal to Thy might, 
Only to Thee, O God, is known. 



APPENDIX G. 339 

9. READINGS FROM THE GREEDS OF CHRISTENDOM 
CONCERNING GOD. 

Reader 1. We read from many creeds in the church of Jesus 
Christ concerning the beings and attributes of God : 

"There is one true and living God, Creator and Lord of heaven 
and earth, almighty, eternal, immense, incomprehensible, infinite 
in intelligence, in will, and in all perfection, who, as being one, 
sole, absolutely simple and immutable spiritual substance, is to be 
declared as really and essentially distinct from the world, of su- 
preme beatitude in and from Himself, and ineffably exalted above 
all things which exist, or are conceivable, except Himself."* 

Reader 2. "We have a God who is one an$ eternal ; and always 
like and the same with Himself ; and besides Him no God exists."f 

Reader 1. "He is eternal, absolutely without beginning or end; 
He is good, omnipotent, creator, foreseeing the future ; He looks 
through all things, is present to all things, fills all things ; is in- 
finite and uncircumscribed, and knoweth all things both hidden and 
manifest."^ 

Reader 2. "There is one divine essence which is called and is 
God, eternal, without body, indivisible, of infinite power, wisdom, 
goodness, the Creator and Preserver of all things, visible and in- 
visible ; and that yet, there are three Persons of the same essence 
and power, who also are coeternal, the Father, the Son, and the 
Holy Ghost." § 

Chorus (sing). 

Holy, Holy, Holy ! Tune — Booh of Praise, p. 9. 

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty! 

Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee : 
Holy, holy, holy ! merciful and mighty, 

God in three Persons, blessed Trinity ! 

Reader 1. "We believe and confess that there is but one God, 
who is one sole and simple essence, spiritual, eternal, invisible, im- 
mutable, infinite, incomprehensible, ineffable, omnipotent ; who is 
all-wise, all-good, all-just, and all-merciful." || 



* Dogmatic Decrees of the Vatican Council (1870). 

t Cyril of Jerusalem. 

% Orthodox Confession of the Eastern Church. 

§ Augsburg Confession (1530). 

|| French Confession of Faith (1559). 



340 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Reader 2. "There is but one living and true God, everlasting, 
without body or parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness ; the 
Maker and Preserver of all things, visible and invisible. And in 
unity of this Godhead, there are three Persons, of one substance, 
power, and eternity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost."* 

Reader 1. "God had all life, glory, goodness, blessedness, in and 
of Himself ; and is alone in and unto Himself all-sufficient, not 
standing in need of any creatures which He hath made, nor deriv- 
ing any glory from them, but only manifesting His own glory in, 
by, unto, and upon them ; He is the alone foundation of all being, 
of whom, through whom, and to whom are all things."t 

Reader 2. "The mode of His existence is a subject far above the 
understanding of man. Finite beings cannot comprehend Him. 
There is nothing in the universe that can justly represent Him, 
for there is none like Him. He is the fountain of all perfection 
and happiness. He is glorified by the whole inanimate creation, 
and is worthy to be served and loved by all intelligences.''^ 

Chorus and Choir (sing). 

Holy, holy, holy ! all the saints adore Thee, 

Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea ; 

Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee, 
Which wert, and art, and evermore shalt be. 

Reader 1. "He made the luminaries that His works might see 
one another, and He conceals Himself in His power from all His 
works." § 

Reader 2. "Eternal in time, unlimited in space, unchangeable, 
pure in character, His serenity and His vastness arise from His 
own perfections." [| 

Assembly (sing). 

Holy, holy, holy ! though the darkness hide Thee, 

Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see, 

Only Thou art holy : there is none beside Thee 
Perfect in power, in love, and purity. 



* Methodist Episcopal Articles of Religion, 1 (a. d. 1874). 

t Westminster Confession (1647). 

$ Free-will Baptist Confession (1834, 1868). 

§ Melito. 

II Robertson. 



APPENDIX G. 



341 



President. "In glory He is incomprehensible, 

Assembly. "In greatness unfathomable, 

President. "In height inconceivable, 

Assembly. "In power incomparable, 

President. "In wisdom unrivaled, 

Assembly. "In goodness inimitable, 

President. "In kindness unalterable. 

Assembly. "If I say He is light, I name but His own work ; 

President. "If I call Him Word, I name but His sovereignty, 

Assembly. "If I call Him Mind, I speak but of His wisdom ; 

President. "If I say He is Spirit, I speak but of His breath ; 

Assembly. "If I call Him Wisdom, I speak of His offspring ; 

President. "If I call Him Strength, I speak of His way ; 

Assembly. "If I call Him Power, I am mentioning His activity ; 

President. "If Providence, I but mention His goodness ; . . . 

Assembly. "If I call Him Judge, I speak of Him as being just ; 

President. "If I call Him Father, I speak of all things as being 
from Him."* 

Assembly. "The eye cannot see Him, though He is (spiritually) 
visible ; 

President. **'He is incomprehensible, though in grace He is 
manifested. 

Assembly. "He is beyond our utmost thought, though our human 



President. "Good without quality, great without quantity; 
Assembly. "A creator, though He lack nothing; . . . 
President. "In His wholeness everywhere, yet without place, 
Assembly. "Eternal without time, making things that are 
changeable, without change of Himself." % 



Fanny J. Crosby. 



10. SONG. 
GOD OF ETERNITY. 

Rev. Robert Lowry. 




1. God of E - ter - ni-ty, An - thor of Time, Giv - er and Source of Life, 

2. Wondrons in Ma-jes-ty, Wisdom, and Might, Lo ! 'twas Thy voice that said, 

3. Time is a per-fect law, Thy word is pure; Righteous are all Thy ways: 

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U. WOBDS OF GOD CONCEENING HIMSELF. 

Pastor. And God said unto Moses, I am that I am. Exod. 
3: 14. 

President. I, even I, am the Lord ; and beside Me there is no 
Saviour. Isa. 43 : 11. 

Reader 1. Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and His Re- 
deemer the Lord of hosts ; I am the first, and I am the last ; and be- 
side Me there is no God. Isa. 44 : 6. 

Reader 2. I am the Lord, I change not. Mai. 3 : 6. 

Choir. Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and 
My right hand hath spanned the heavens. Isa. 48 : 13. 

First Chorus. The Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, 
I am the Almighty God. Gen. 17 : 1. 

Second Chorus. I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto 
Jacob, by the name of God Almighty ; but by My name Jehovah 
was I not known to them. Exod. 6 : 3. 



APPENDIX G. 343 

Assembly, Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God 
afar off? 

Pastor. Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not 
see him? saith the Lord. 

Assembly. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord. Jer. 
23 : 23, 24. 

Pastor. Thus saith the Lord ; . . . I know the things that come 
into your mind, every one of them. Ezek. 11 : 5. 

Assembly. And the Lord passed by before him (Moses), and 
proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, long- 
suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth. 

Pastor. Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and 
transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty ; 
visiting the sins of the fathers upon the children, and upon the chil- 
dren's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation. Exod. 
34 : 6, 7. 

Assembly. I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep 
anger forever. Jer. 3 : 12. 

Pastor. I the Lord your God am holy. Lev. 19 : 2. 

Assembly. I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, 
your King. Isa. 43 : 15. 

12. HYMN. 

Downs. C. M. Tune — Songs of Devotion, p. 37. 



§pl 



1 My God, how wonderful Thou art, 

Thy majesty how bright ! 
How beautiful Thy mercy-seat 
In depths of burning light ! 

2 How dread are Thine eternal years, 

O everlasting Lord ; 
By prostrate spirits day and night 
Incessantly adored ! 

3 How beautiful, how beautiful, 

The sight of Thee must be ; 
Thine endless wisdom, boundless power, 
And awful purity ! 



344 THE MODEKN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

4 O how I fear Thee, living God, 

With deepest, tenderest fears, 
- And worship Thee with trembling hope, 
And penitential tears. 

5 Father of Jesus, love's reward ! 

What rapture will it be, 
Prostrate before Thy throne to lie, 
And gaze, and gaze on Thee ! 

13. THOMAS A KEMPIS PRAYER. 

Pastor. Above all things and in all things, O my soul, thou shalt 
rest in the Lord alway, for He Himself is the everlasting rest of 
the saints. 

First Chorus. Grant us, O God, to rest in Thee above all crea- 
tures, 

Second Chorus. Above all health and beauty, 

First Chorus. Above all glory and honor, 

Second Chorus. Above all power and dignity, 

First Chorus. Above all knowledge and subtilty, 

Second Chorus. Above all riches and arts, 

First Chorus. Above all joy and gladness, 

Second Chorus. Above all fame and praise, 

First Chorus. Above all sweetness and comfort, 

Second Chorus. Above all hope and promise, 

First Chorus. Above all desert and desire, 

Second Chorus. Above all gifts and benefits that Thou canst give 
and impart unto us, 

First Chorus. Above all mirth and joy that the mind of man can 
receive and feel, 

Second Chorus. Finally, above angels and archangels, and above 
all the heavenly host. 

First Chorus. Above all things visible and invisible, 

Second Chorus. And above all that Thou art not, O our God. 

Pastor. Because Thou, O Lord our God, art supremely good 
above all ; 

First Chorus. Thou alone art most high, 

Second Chorus. Thou alone most powerful, 

First Chorus. Thou alone most full and sufficient, 

Second Chorus. Thou alone most sweet and most full of consola- 
tion. 

First Chorus. Thou alone art most lovely and loving, 



APPENDIX G. 



345 



Second Chorus. Thou alone most noble and glorious above all 
things, 

Pastor and Double Chorus. In whom all good things together 
both perfectly are and ever have been and shall be. 

Assembly (sing). 

GLORIA PATRI. 



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Holy | Ghost ; 

2. As it was in the beginning, is now, and j ev-er | shall be, || 
world | without | end, A- | men. 

14. A SERMON OUTLINE BY THE PASTOR. 
15. TE DEUM LATTDAMTJS. 

Choir. We praise Thee, O God ; we acknowledge Thee to be the 
Lord. 

Assembly. All the earth doth worship Thee, the Father ever- 
lasting. 

Choir. To Thee all angels cry aloud; the heavens, and all the 
powers therein. 

Assembly. To Thee cherubim, and seraphim, continually do cry, 
Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Sabaoth ! 

Choir. Heaven and earth are full of the majesty of Thy glory. 

Assembly. The glorious company of the apostles praise Thee ; 

Choir. The goodly fellowship of the prophets praise Thee ; 

Assembly. The noble army of martyrs praise Thee ; 

Choir. The holy church throughout all the world doth acknowl- 
edge Thee, 

Assembly. The Father of an infinite Majesty ; 

Choir. Thine adorable, true, and only Son ; 

Assembly. Also the Holy Ghost, the Comforter. 

Choir. Thou art the King of glory, O Christ ! 

Assembly. Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father. 

Choir. When Thou tookest upon Thee to deliver man, Thou didst 
humble Thyself to be born of a virgin, 



346 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

Assembly. When Thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death, 
Thou didst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers. 

Choir. Thou sittest at the right hand of God, in the glory of the 
Father. 

Assembly. We believe that Thou shalt come, to be our Judge. 

Choir. We therefore pray Thee, help Thy servants, whom Thou 
hast redeemed with Thy precious blood. 

Assembly. Make them to be numbered with Thy saints, in glory 
everlasting. 

Choir. O Lord ! save Thy people, and bless Thy heritage. 

Assembly. Govern them, and lift them up for ever. 

Choir. Day by day we magnify Thee ; 

Assembly. And we worship Thy name ever, world without end. 

Choir. Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin. 

Assembly. O Lord, have mercy upon us. 

Choir. O Lord, let Thy mercy be upon us, as our trust is in Thee. 

Assembly. O Lord, in Thee have I trusted ; let me never be con- 
founded. 

16. DOXOLOGY. 
Tune — Book of Praise, p. 9. 

Holy, holy, holy ! Lord God Almighty ! 

All thy works shall praise Thy name, in earth, and sky, and sea : 
Holy, holy, holy ! merciful and mighty ! 

God in three Persons, blessed Trinity ! 

17. BENEDICTION. 



APPENDIX H. 347 



APPENDIX H. 

The following pages are from the original announcement with the 
first lesson-leaf of the system of Sunday-school lessons entitled 
"Two Years with Jesus," which were published in the Chicago 
Teacher in 1866 : 

A New System of Sunday School Study. 
First Year : Life, Journeys, and Miracles of Jesus. 

Second Year : The Parables, Conversations, and Discourses 
of Jesus. 

I.— THE SYSTEM 

1. Comprises only twenty-four lessons for the year, spending two 
Sabbaths upon each lesson. 

2. The fifth Sabbath of the Five-Sabbath-Months reserved for re- 
view, concert of prayer, missionary exercises, etc. 

3. The Teacher will contain analyses, notes, quotations, maps, 
anecdotes, and other illustrations for all lessons, for the use of 
teachers, prepared and compiled under the supervision of the entire 
editorial committee, representing the different denominations. Two 
lessons will appear monthly. 

4. Each lesson will be divided into two question-lessons for the 
use of the scholars, each number of The Teacher containing four 
question-lessons. 

5. These question-lessons will be published on question-papers, 
and furnished gratuitously to those schools taking at least ten 
copies of The Teacher. Scholars will receive five extra question- 
papers (containing the four lessons for the month) for every sub- 
scriber. Thus twenty subscribers in a school receive one hundred 
question-papers. 

6. The "Elliptical arrangement" of the lesson on the question- 
paper is especially commended to the notice of teachers, 



348 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

7. A "Golden Text," or a selection of Scripture for memorizing 
each Sabbath, is given. 

8. A "Home Lesson" is also suggested, thus encouraging the 
reading of the Bible at home by the children. 

9. A simple and beautiful plan of analysis of all Scripture les- 
sons is also furnished. 

II.— PLAN OF ANALYSIS : 

Or Universal Question Guide, Adapted to all Bible Lessons. 

P. P. P. P. D. D. D. D. 

Here are four P's and four D's, by the aid of which teachers and 
scholars may prepare every lesson : 

1. P. P. Parallel Passages. Is the incident, parable, conver- 
sation, or discourse of the lesson, or anything like it elsewhere given 
in Scripture? 

2. P. Persons (Biographical.) Who wrote this lesson, and to 
whom? What persons are mentioned, and what do you know about 
them? 

3. P. Places (Topographical.) Where did these persons live? 
Places mentioned in the lessons? Where situated? Size, dis- 
tance, and direction from Jerusalem? 

4. D. Dates (Chronological.) In what year of the world and 
of Christ did these things occur? Age of persons mentioned? 
Allusion to days, hours, seasons, &c. 

5. D. Doings (Historical.) What did each person of the 
lesson do? Who had the most to do? Why? 

6. D. Doctrines (Theological.) What truths about God, man, 
character, conduct, the future, and the present are here taught? 

7. D. Duties (Practical.) What duties to God, man, self, to 
church, nation, neighbor, enemy, friend, world, old, young, good, and 
bad, are here taught? 



APPENDIX H. 



349 



III.— -LIST OF LESSONS FOR THE FIRST YEAR. 
The Life, Journeys, and Miracles of Jesus. 



Sabbaths. 


Jan. 


7.... 


44 


14. . . . 


44 


21.... 


44 


28.... 


Feb 


4.... 


41 


11.... 


44 


18.... 


44 


25.... 


Mar 


. 4.... 


44 


11.... 


44 


18.... 


44 


25.... 


Apr 


1.... 


• *» 


8.... 


44 


15. . . . 


44 


22.... 


44 


29.... 


Mas 


6.... 


44 


13. . . . 


44 


20.... 


44 


27.... 


June 3.... 


»• 


10.... 




17. . . . 


44 


24... 


July 


1.... 
8.... 
15.... 


44 


44 


22.... 


44 


29.... 


Aug 


. 5.... 


44 


12. . . . 


44 


19.... 


u 


26.... 


Sepl 


.2.... 


«» 


9.... 


H 


16.... 


44 


23. . . . 


M 


30.... 


Oct. 


7.... 


44 


14.... 


44 


21... 


u 


28.... 


Nov 


. 4.... 


44 


11.... 


44 


18. . . . 


44 


25.... 


Dec 


. 2.... 


44 


9.... 


u 


16.... 


** 


23.... 



Topics. 



Home 
Les- 
son, 



Golden Text. 



The Babe of Bethlehem announced by angels.— Luke ii 
8-14 

and found by the shepherds.— Luke ii, 14-20 

The Boy xn the Temple : missed and found 

Luke ii, 40-52 

The Man at the Jordan : baptized by John.— Matt.iii,13-15 

and approved by the Father.— Matt, iii, 16-17 

The Tempted One: The three trials.— Matt, iv, 1-9.. . . 

and the three triumphs.— Matt, iv, l-li 

The Transfigured Christ : with the Saints.— Luke ix, 28-31 

and with the Disciples. - Luke 11, 32-36 

The Grief of Gethsemane: the struggle.— Luke xxii,39-44 

and the victory.- -Luke xxii, 45-53 

The Trial of the Innocent: before Annas and Caiaphas 
John xviii, 12-27 , 

and before Pilate.— John xviii, 28-40 ; xix, 1-16 

The Crucified One: approaching.— Luke xxiii, 26-32 

and on the Cross.— Luke xxiii, 33-56 

Concert 

The Crucified alive again, in Judea.- Luke xxiv 

and in Galilee.— John xxi 

The Ascending Lord : on Olivet.— Luke xxiv, 50-53 

and in the clouds.— Acts i, 9-14 

The Journeys of Jesus : in North Palestine.— Matt, iv, 
12-25 

and in the South 

The Cities of Christ's labor and residence, 

The Mountains of Jesus 

Jesus wrought Miracles in great numbers.— Matt, iv, 23-25 

and as proof of Divine authority.— John iii, 1-2. . . 
The First Miracle: the circumstances.— John ii, 1-11 

and lesson.— John ii, l-ll 

Concert 

Sight to the Blind, at Jerusalem.— John ix, 1-7 

and at Bethsaida.— Mark viii, 22-26 

Health to the Leprous, in Galilee. —Matt, viii, 1-4 

and in Samaria.— Luke xvii, 11-19 

Food to the Famishing : the five thousand.— Matt, xiv, 
15-21 

and the four thousand.— Matt, xv, 32-39 

Hearing to the Deaf.— Mark vii, 31-37 

and speech to the dumb. -Mark vii, 31-37 

Concert 

Calmed the Storm— Matt, viii, 23-27 

and in Matt, xiv, 22-33 

Cast out Devils, in Galilee.— Matt. viii< 28-34 

and in Syrophenicia.— Mark xv, 21-28 

The Dead Girl : visited.— Matt, ix, 18-19 

and raised from her bed.— Matt, ix, 23-26 

The Dead Youth : met.— Luke vii, 11-13 

and raised from his bier.— Luke vii, 14-17 

The Dead Man : mourned for.— John xi, 17-32 

and raised from his tomb.— John xi, 33-46 

The Sinner Saved : before.— Matt, ix, 1-8 

and after Christ's death.— Acts xxvi, 13-20 

Concert 



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Matt, i, 21. 
John i, 1-14. 
Luke ii, 49. 
Col. iii, 20. 
Matt, iii, 13-15. 
Matt, iii, 16-17. 
Heb. iv, 15. 
Heb. iv, 16. 
Matt, xvii, 4. 
Matt, xvii, 5. 
Matt, xxvi, 38. 
Matt, xxvi, 39. 

Mark xiv, 61-62. 
John xviii, 37. 
Rom, v. 7-8. 
Luke xxiii, 34. 
Phil, iv, 2. 
Luke xxiv, 32. 
John xxi, 15. 
Matt.xxvii,l9-20. 
Mark xvi, 19. 

Mark i, 38. 
Acts x, 38. 
Matt, xi, 23. 
Psa. cxxv, 1-2. 
Luke vii, 22. 
John v, 36. 
Exod. xv-23. 
John ii, 11. 
Psa. i, 1-3. 
John ix, 25. 
Eph. v, 14. 

1 John i, 7. 

2 Cor. vi, 17-18. 

John vi, 27. 
John vi, 35. 
Isa. xxxv, 5. 
Isa. xxxv, 6. 
Tsa. xxxv, 1-2. 
Psa. cvii, 29-30. 
Matt, xiv, 27. 
James iv. 7. 
Matt, xv, 26-27. 
Matt, ix, 24. 
1 Cor. xv, 19-20. 
1 Cor. xv, 53. 
1 Cor. xv, 54-55. 
John xi, 23-24. 
John xi, 25-26. 
Matt, xi, 28-30. 
1 Tim. i, 15. 
1 John ii, 15-17. 



350 THE MODEEN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

QUESTIONS ON LESSON I.— No. 1. 
The Babe of Bethlehem Announced by Angels. 

i. — SCRIPTURE. 

Lesson : Luke n : 8-14. Home Reading : i Sam. xvi ; Mat. i-ii. 

II. GOLDEN TEXT. 

And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name 
JESUS ; for he shall save his people from their sins. — Mat. i : 21. 

III. ELLIPTICAL EXERCISE. 

During this exercise, which should be the first after the recitation 
of the text, let the scholars close their testaments. The teacher 
will read the following, the scholars supplying the omitted words : 



8. And there were in the same 
shepherds abiding in keep- 
ing over their by . 

9. Andlo,the of came upon 

and the glory — -shone round 

about ; and they were — -. 

10. And the angel said unto , 

Fear for, behold, I you good 

which shall be . 



11. For unto you is born this 

in a Saviour, which is . 

12. And this shall be a sign unto 

you, Ye shall the babe wrapped 

, lying . 

13. And suddenly there was with 

a multitude of praising 

and saying 

14. Glory to , and on earth . 



IV. — TOPICS. 

1. The night-watch— v. 8. 3. The angel's message— v. 10-12. 

2. The angel's visit— v. 9. 4. The choir of angels— v. 13-14. 

The class having recited the golden text, and supplied promptly and per- 
fectly the omitted words of the elliptical exercise, will now recite this outline 
until perfectly familiar with it. After this, let them be drilled upon the fol- 
lowing questions, the teacher seeking to hold their attention every moment. 
Encourage them to ask questions of their own, and make a close, practical, 
personal application of the subject to them. 

V. — QUESTIONS. 

The numbers correspond to those of the analytical questions 
above. Questions in Capital Letters are for the smallest chil- 
dren. The middle classes will use all except "Questions for 
Teachers and Senior Scholars." 

Repeat the Four Points of the Lesson. — 1. Will one of the 
scholars describe the night watch? What persons are mentioned? 
What is a Shepherd? What great patriarch, lawgiver, and king 
were shepherds? What were these Shepherds doing? Why? 
Was it hard work? See Genesis xxxi : 36-40. Where were these 
shepherds? Near what Town were the Shepherds? Point it 
out on the map. Give some of its Bible names. Where is the 
"field" mentioned in verse 8? (About half a mile east of the 
town.) What Shepherd Boy of Bethlehem became a King? 
What other place was called "the city of David"? 

2. Name the Second Topic. What is an angel? (In the 



APPENDIX H. 



351 



Greek, "a messenger"; one who is sent.) Do you Know any 
Story about Angels? What shepherd traveler once saw angels 
in his dreams? Do you remember the name of any angel? Why is 
this one called "Angel of the Lord"? Was it Perfectly Dark 
w t hile the Angel was with the Shepherds? What is your 
reason for thinking it was — or that it was not? How did the 
Shepherds feel? Why did they feel so? How should you have 
felt under the circumstances? What did the "glory of the Lord" 
look like?— Exod. XL : 34-38. 

3. Name the Third Topic. What were the First Two 
Words Spoken by the Angel? What four things did the angel 
say? Why was all this "good tidings"? About Whom did the 
Angel tell? When Born? Where Born? Where Laid? 
How Dressed? What were "swaddling clothes"? What names 
does the angel give to Christ? 

4. Name the Fourth Topic. What glorious scene occurred? 
How many angels were there? Are there many angels? Give the 
Angels' Song? Why should the angels make so much ado about a 
poor babe? If the Angels Loved and Praised Jesus, What 
ought Man to Do? W t hat do you think of Those who Take 
His Name in Vain? What three things is He called in verse 11? 



QUESTIONS ON LESSON I.— No. 2. 
The Babe of Bethlehem Found by the Shepherds. 

i. — scripture. 
Lesson : Luke n : 15-20. Home Reading : Luke i-ii. 

II. GOLDEN TEXT. 

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, 
and the Word was God. * * And the Word was made flesh and 
dwelt among us." — John 1 : 13-14. 

III. — ELLIPTICAL EXERCISE. 



15. And it came to pass, as the 

angels were from them into , 

the shepherds said Let us now 

go even and see this which is 

come which the Lord hath 

unto us. 

16. And they came with and 

found , and lying . 

17. And when they had seen it, 
they made known abroad the say- 



ing which was told them concern- 
ing . 

18. And all that had heard it won- 
dered at which were told them 

by . 

19. But Mary kept all these things, 
and in her . 

20. And the shepherds glorify- 
ing and for all the things that 

they had as it was told unto them. 



rv. — topics. 



1. A good resolution — v. 15. 

2. A blessed visit — v. 16. 



3. A good report — v. 17. 

4. The results— v. 18-20. 



352 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



v. — questions. 

1. Give the Four Topics. Did the Angels Remain with the 
Shepherds all Night? Where Did the Angels Go? What did 
the shepherds resolve? Why did they not send a spy or agent? 
Did they doubt the angel's report? What would have been the re- 
sult if the shepherds had disbelieved, or laughed at each other for 
being afraid, or put off going to Bethlehem? Does God Ever Tell 
us About Jesus as Saviour? (Yes, by his Holy Spirit in our 
hearts.) Do we always do as the shepherds did? 

2. How far did they have to go? (Half a mile, perhaps.) De- 
scribe the visit in your own language. (The word "manger" 
does not mean "crib" but "stable".) What other men visited the 
babe Jesus after this? — Mat. n : 1. 

3. Did the Shepherds Keep their Visit a Secret? Would 
you have told about it? Why? 

4. What is the Last Topic? How were the People Af- 
fected who Heard of it? What is it to "wonder"? What did 
Mary do? — v. 19. What is it to "ponder"? Did the Shepherds 
Stay in Bethlehem? Were they Sad on their Way Back? 
What reason had they to be so glad? Have we greater reason to 
rejoice, because of Christ's birth? Why? 

LESSON II.— PART I. 

The Boy in the Temple. 

i. — scripture. 

Lesson : Luke n : 40-52. Home Reading : 1 Samuel i-iii. 

II. GOLDEN TEXT. 

And He said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? Wist 
ye not that I must be about my Father's business? — Luke II : 45. 

III. ELLIPTICAL EXERCISE. 



40. And the child grew, and waxed 

filled with and the was 

upon him. 

41. Now his parents went to 

every at the of the . 

42. And when he was — —they went 
up after the of the . 

43. And when they had fulfilled 

as they returned, the child Jesus 

behind in , and Joseph and 

knew . 

44. But they, supposing him to 

have been went a day's and 

they sought him among and . 

45. And when they found him not, 
they again to seeking him. 

46. And it came to pass, that after 
they found him in the sit- 



ting in the of the both hear- 
ing them, and questions. 

47. And all that heard him were 
at his understanding and . 

48. And when they saw him they 

were and his mother said unto 

him, why hast thou thus- with 

us? behold, thy and I have 

thee sorrowing. 

49. And he said unto them, . 

50. And they understood not the 
saying which he spake unto them. 

51. And he went down with them, 

and came and was unto them; 

but his mother kept all these in 

her . 

52. And Jesus increased in and 

stature, and in with God and . 



APPENDIX H. 353 

TV. — TOPICS. 

1. The child Jesus at Nazareth— 3. Lost— v. 43-45. 

v. 40. 4. Found— v. 46-50. 

2. On his paschal journey.— v. 41-42. 5. At home again— v. 51-52. 

v. — questions. 

1. Give First Topic. Name of the Child? Where Did He 
Live? His parents' name? Joseph's trade? — Mat. xin : 55. 

2. Second Topic. What do you mean by "paschal"? With 
Whom Did He go? How old was Jesus Then? How often was 
the passover held? In what Hebrew month? (In the month 
Nisan or Abib, corresponding to our April.) On what day of the 
month? (The fourteenth.) What Christian festival have we 
about the same time of the year? 

3. Third Topic. How far were they from Jerusalem when they 
missed Christ? What does the expression "fulfilled the days" 
mean? — v. 43. Where Did Many Suppose Jesus w t as all the. 
Time? 

4. Fourth Topic. How Long Did they Search? How Soon, 
and where Did they Find Jesus ? Can you give the conversation 
between Jesus and his mother? What are the first recorded words 
of Jesus? — v. 49. 

5. Now Give Softly, and in Concert, the Five Topics. Did 
Christ go with His Parents? Where to? What is meant 
by his being "subject unto them"? What Time Did he Leave? — 
Mark vi : 3. In what did he increase? What is it to be about 
God's business in the world? How may a child do this? Are You 
at all Like the Sweet Child Jesus? In What are You Un- 
like Him? 

LESSON II.— PART II. 
The Boy in the Temple. 

i. — SCRIPTURE. 
Lesson: Luke n : 40-52. Home Reading: Timothy i-iii. 

II. GOLDEN TEXT. 

Children obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing 
unto the Lord. — Colossians in : 20. 

ill — elliptical exercise, iv. — topics. Same as in Previous 

Lesson. 

v. — questions. 
1. What Four Things Does Luke Say About Jesus in Verse 
Forty? Where Did Jesus Live Then? What is the present name 
of the place? (Na-si-rah.) Its population? (About 4,000.) How 
23 



354 THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 

far is Nazareth from the following points : Sea of Galilee, Mediter- 
ranean Sea, Jerusalem? 

2. To What City Did Jesus go at 12 Years of Age? How 
far from Nazareth? What other names of Jerusalem can you 
give? How did Jesus Probably Travel? If he went 22 miles a 
day how long would it require to reach Jerusalem? How many 
hours in "a day's journey" in Palestine? (Six or eight.) How 
many miles an hour? (About three.) What Sacred Cities 
would Christ Pass in Going by most Direct Road from Naz- 
areth to Jerusalem? How often were the Jews required to go to 
Jerusalem? — Exodus xxin : 17. Why did Mary go? (Probably 
because of her devotion to Jesus : or her religious zeal : or in order 
to visit relations in Bethlehem, Palestine.) How long did they 
stay in Jerusalem? 

3. Who were Kinsfolk and Acquaintance? Was Mary to 
blame for losing sight of Christ? What did she and Joseph do? 

4. Where was Jesus Found? Who built the temple? When 
destroyed? Who rebuilt it? W T ho repaired and beautified it? 
With Whom Did they Find Jesus? Were they physicians? 
What was Jesus Doing? Was he really "disputing" with any 
one? Whom did he call "Father" in verse 49? Is God the 
Father of Little Children now t ? Has He any "business" in the 
world for us to do now-a-days? What business? 

5. Would You Love Such a Companion as Jesus was After 
His Return to Nazareth. Do You Now do or say Anything 
Every Day That You Would not if Jesus was With You? 
But is He not with us Every Day? Why is it easier and wiser 
to be Christians in childhood than to wait until we become men and 
women? 



INDEX. 



355 



INDEX. 



Absent teachers, 303, 307 
Abuses of the Sunday school, 17 
Adaptation m teaching, 153, 321 
Akron, Ohio, 169, 192; Biblical mu- 
seum, 311 
Amusements and the superintend- 
ent, 48 
Analytical plan of review, 177 
Announcements, invariable, 303 
Annual reports, 309 
Architecture, Sunday-school, 165 
Assembly, a new plan, 232-240 ; 
Jewish precedent, 232; name, 232, 
objects, 54, 235; exercises, 235, 236; 
objections, 237, 238; constitution, 
239, 240; service, 333-346 
Associated schools, 308 
Attention, institute conversation, 
122; defined, 322; in primary class, 
219 
Authority in Sunday school, 39, 40 

Benevolence to be cultivated in 
children, 59; plans, 316 

Bible to be used in Sunday school, 
305, 307; the superintendent and 
the, 49; used in institute, 134; in 
connection with weekly review, 
174 ; in primary class, 215 ; the 
teacher and the, 92, 321; young 
people, study of, 243; source of 
Sunday-school lessons, 251-253 

Bible geography, 92, 107, 108, 133, 
134, 135, 178, 209, 319, 329, 330 

Bible history, 134, 307 

Biblical precedents for Sunday- 
school work, 11, 12 

Blackboard, 185, 222, 223, 302 

Boy-choir. 305 

Boys, rough and insubordinate, 304, 

310 

Breakfast-table puzzles, 316 

Catechism, 266-268, 306 
Chautauqua, 141, 311 
Chautauqua Literary and 

Scientific Circle, 228, 237, 271, 

278 
Children at church, 18, 57; church 

membership of, 20 
Church, what it is, 16; authority 

over Sunday school, 69 



Class in Bible geography, 330- 

332 
Class-meetings and Sunday school, 
298 

Class-sociables, 303, 304 
Collection-envelopes, 304 
Conscience and church-going, 

309 

Conventions, 90 

Country Sunday schools, 220- 
224, 279-298; difficulties in connec- 
tion with, 279-282 ; how to overcome 
these difficulties, 282 ; officers of. 
284 ; decoration of room, 285 ; infant 
class corner, 286; hour of meeting, 
287 ; teachers of, 288 ; in winter, 289- 
293; real reason for closing, 294; 
compared with summer closing of 
city schools, 298; class-meetings 
and, 298 

Culture, 75, 116 

Day school, 58 
Denominationalism, 281, 283 
Devices for studying history, 318 
Devices for enlisting children in 

study outside of Sunday school, 

313-319 
Difficulty-meeting, 311 
Divine help, 76, 93, 164 

Education of children, 205 
Elliptical reading, 176 
Elocution in Sunday school, 309 
Emotions, 206 

Faith, 206 

Good manners, 319 

Graduation in Sunday school, 187- 
203; natural process, 188; plan of 
1875, 191; Akron plan, 192-194; plan 
of 1855-1857, 195 ; Jewish school, 196- 
203 ; demanded by senior scholars, 
230 

Herbaria, 315 

High pressure, 306 

Holy Catholic Church, 61 

Home and the Sunday school, 23-37, 

215, 308, 309 
Home department, 32, 33 



356 



THE MODERN SUNDAY SCHOOL. 



Home envelope, 30 
Home-made picture-books, 314 
Home museum, 315 
Home studies in architecture, 316 ; 
in geography, 318; in Bible, 26, 29 

Ideals, 83 

Illustration and illustrative 
teaching, 137-139, 154, 179, 211, 212, 
323 

Infant class, 307; books for, 308; 
gymnastic drill, 306 [see Primary 
class) 

Institutes (Sunday-school) denned, 
120 ; exercises, 121-140, 149 ; prepara- 
tion for, 143-150; presiding officer, 
148; secretary, 149; instructors, 
150 

Intellectual quickening, 322 

International Bible -reading 
Union, 33 

International lessons, 62, 217, 

235 

Itinerant letter, 303 
Jacobs, B. F., 258 

Lecture-lessons, 125 

Lesson analysis, 321 

Lesson banners, 307 

Lesson helps, 302 

Lessons in Sunday school. 248- 
268; from the Bible, 248-251; a 
course of study, 251-253 ; denomina- 
tional studies, 253 ; a series of years, 
254 ; home co-operation in teaching 
the, 254; pastoral help, 254; advan- 
tages of the uniform, 255, 256 ; inter- 
national, 257 ; advantages, 258- 
260; supplemental lessons, 261-263; 
graded courses, 263, 264; objections 
answered, 264-266; catechism, 266- 
268 

Lesson leaves, 265; first of the 
modern series of, 350-354 

Lesson review, defined, 172; advo- 
cated, 173, 174; class reviews, 174- 
176; from the desk, 176-186; a fail- 
ure, 181, 182 

Lesson-system, first of modern 
series, 347, 348 

Library, 51 

Lyceum, 228, 237, 271 

Map-d rawing, 304 

M EMORY, 205 

Mental awakening, 168 
Miller, Lewis, 165, 192 
Missionary work, 308 
Mission schools, 14, 40 
Mothers' meetings, 305 
Music, choral circle, 309; choral 

service, 306; church hymns, 307; 

Solos, 310 



Non-essentials, 305 

Normal class, 85-119; secular, 85; 
object,88 ; forms of, 97,98 ; exercises, 
100-102; praxes, 102-108; courses of 
Study, 109, 110, 140, 142, 325, 326; 
International Normal Committee, 
111; questions answered, 111-119; 
at Chautauqua, 311 

Objects of the Sunday school, 18, 

27, 188, 320 
Officers of the Sunday school, 38, 

41; election of. 41, 69 
One Consecrated heart, 282 
Opening services, 310 
Order in Sunday school, 45 
Organization, 38-42, 50 

Palestine class, 330-332 

Parallel passages, 321 

Parents, their influence, 24,216, 217; 
at Sunday school, 28 

Pastor, should have a voice in elect- 
ing the superintendent, 68 ; and the 
normal class, 113; and uniform les- 
son, 142; the institute, 144 ; training 
his teachers, 162; at public recog- 
nition of teachers, 161; assembly 
service, 236, 237; Bible meetings 
during the week, 255; as an educa- 
tor, 275-277; children's meetings, 
312; plans for exciting an interest 
among the children, 313-319; the 
Palestine class, 330 

Pat on, Dr. J. B., 247 

Periodicals, 44, 50 

Pictures, 311, 314 

Practice in teaching, 96, 100-108, 

223 

Press, 50 

Primary class, no room, 286; im- 
portant work, 204; principal work, 
205, 206 ; prayers in, 207, 208 ; room. 
208, 209; organization, 210; variety 
in unity, 210; illustrative teaching, 
211,212; cabinet, 214; home work, 
215; Bible in, 215; mothers in, 216; 
lessons in, 217, 265; Ninette, 220- 
224 

Programme, opening exercises, 310 ; 
variety, 304. 305; specimen, 313; im- 
pressive moments, 306, 307 

Promise meeting, 125 

Public service, 306 

Pulpit, 56, 308 

Pupils, 70, 95; troublesome, 304 

Question drawer, 312 

Questions, 324; use of printed, 328 

RAIKES, 13 

Reading circles, 277; the C. L. S. 
C. and the V. R. C.,228, 237, 271, 278; 
Lyceum, 228, 237, 271 



INDEX. 



357 



Kecreative evening classes, 

247 

School-idea in the church, 11 
Scroll of history, 306 
Secular schools, 87, 187, 189, 274 
Seed thoughts on Sunday-school 

work, 320, 324 
Self-activity, 170 
Self-training, 98 
Senior classes, 225-247, 304; adults, 

225; co-operative pupils, 226; 

troublesome pupils, 226 ; assembly, 

228, 232-240 ; study at home by senior 

pupils, 240-247 
Sentimental piety, 80 
Sick scholars, 308 
Small schools, 309 
Specimen lessons, 100, 130 
Spiritual culture, 73, 79 
Stereopticon, 303 
Sunday school, defined, 320; the 

church and the, 320 ; the pulpit. 320 ; 

the home, 25, 216, 320 ; as a "school," 

320; speeches in, 44, 47 
Superintendent, 43-71 ; where 

rind. 65; relation to teachers, 158; 

announcements, 303 ; desk, 305 ; 

class, 304; absence, 304; plans, 302, 

313; unpopular. 309 
Supplemental lesson, 261-263 
Sympathy, 220 

Teacher, 72-84, 320; aims, 72, 86,87; 
work, 158-171; qualifications, 75, 
77, 79, 80, 90. 96, 167; character, 
162; low standards, 159; appoint- 



ment, 159 ; recognition and installa- 
tion, 160, 161, 299-301 ; probation and 
preparation, 160; discouraged, 84; 
marble teachers, 162; absent, 303; 
true success, 84; love, 188; four 
kinds of teachers, 322; relation to 
parents, 27; training, 321 

Teachers' meetings, 89, 122-124, 
151-157, 182, 305, 312 ; and the church 
prayer-meeting, 156 

Teaching defined, 99, 163, 168, 169; 
laws of, 163-170; variety of methods, 
327-329; the principal work, 72; 
true teaching, 322 

Tea-meetings, 306 

Temperance, 306 

Thinking, 322 

Three forms of the Sunday 
school, 13, 14 

Tracts, 51, 305, 310 

Ventilation, 303 

Victoria Beading Circle, 228,237. 

271. 278 

Week-day POWER, 46, 52, 58, 269-278 ; 
world-church always open, 269 ; al- 
lurements, 270 ; counteractive 
agencies, 271; all for God, 271-274; 
church work, 275; ministers, 277; 
reading circles, 277 

Word -picturing, 155, 323 

Word-studies. 314 

worldliness, 79 

Writing " compositions," 30 

Young people, 53 



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